Enacted laws prohibiting discrimination in the national housing market:
- Civil Rights Act of 1866
- Executive Order 11063
- Civil Rights Act of 1968 (Fair Housing Act) “Equal Access to Housing in HUD Programs - Regardless of Sexual Orientation or Gender Identity”
Forms of illegal discrimination:
- Discriminatory misrepresentation and advertising
- Providing unequal services
- Steering, blockbusting, redlining
- Restricting MLS participation
Fair Housing Act exemptions
- A privately owned single fam home where no broker is used and no discriminatory advertising is used
- Rental of an apartment where the owner is also an occupant, provided the advertising is not discriminatory
- Facilities owned by private clubs and leased non-commercially to members, religious organizations and leased non commercially to members
Equal Opportunity in Housing
Required HUD poster for fair housing laws in selling, renting, advertising, and financing residential properties
Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA)
requires lenders to be impartial in determining who qualifies for a loan
Home Mortgage Disclosure Act
designed to prohibit redlining
Trade association
voluntary nonprofit organization to resolve the industry’s problems, promote its progress, and enhance its service
Real Estate Association/ Board
voluntary organization whose members are engaged in some phase of the real estate business
Realtist
a broker who is a member of both the local and national chapters of the Association of Real Estate Brokers
arbitration complaint
its generally over an issue of money
Regulatory Ethics Standards
Article 1: Protecting the best interests of the client
Article 2: Disclosure of pertinent facts
Article 9: Get it in Writing
Article 12: Truth in advertising
Article 16: Respecting another agency relationship
Guidelines for making ethical decisions regarding agency:
- determine the exact nature of the problem and the parties involved
- Concentrate on the pertinent facts of the case
- Check for laws or regulations that may affect the decision
- Specify who stands to gain and who stands to lose by the decision
- Explore various solutions to the problem
- Make a decision that can be supported comfortably
