Reports of Bias Against Black Renters on Increase : Housing: Undercover audits find patterns of discrimination. Part of the problem is ignorance of federal and state laws by apartment managers, often new immigrants.
An African American man applies to rent an apartment in a Latino neighborhood of Bell Gardens. The manager, who is Latino, shows him what’s available--a dim, cockroach-infested unit in need of repair.
Thirty minutes later, a Latino applicant knocks at the same manager’s door. This time, the manager shows the prospective tenant a freshly painted, newly carpeted unit, ready for immediate occupancy.
The situation is real, part of an undercover test conducted by housing advocates who say it demonstrates discrimination against prospective African American tenants by Latino landlords and apartment managers. Part of the problem, say advocates for apartment owners, is that many of the landlords, especially new immigrants, don’t know that what they are doing is illegal.
Despite state and federal laws protecting housing applicants from discrimination based on race, age, gender or disabilities, among other categories, in Los Angeles County it is common for a black applicant to be discouraged from taking an apartment in a building owned and occupied by Latinos, said Susie Davies, discrimination coordinator for the Fair Housing Foundation. The Long Beach-based nonprofit organization provides counseling on housing laws for tenants and landlords and investigates housing discrimination complaints for cities throughout southeast Los Angeles County.
The Fair Housing Foundation receives 30 to 40 discrimination complaints each month, Davies said, double the number it received two years ago. Heightened awareness about housing rights has led to an increase in discrimination complaints, advocates said. Reports of housing discrimination based on race in Los Angeles County increased 31% in the past year, according to a report by the Fair Housing Congress of Southern California, which oversees four housing councils from South-Central to the San Fernando Valley.
The problem is by no means restricted to the county. Nationwide, African Americans experience discrimination at least half the time when applying for housing, according to a 1991 study by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
In a dozen random tests for discrimination conducted in Huntington Park and Bell Gardens in the past year, more than half showed evidence or suspicion of discrimination based on race or national origin, according to Fair Housing Foundation reports.
In one case in Huntington Park, a Latino manager showed no units to an African American tester and told him his application would be reviewed later. The Latino tester, who arrived 30 minutes later and offered similar credentials, was shown three units and offered a lease.
If an undercover audit discovers discrimination, the owner may be urged to come to a training session on discrimination law, housing advocates said. Victims of discrimination can file lawsuits or ask federal or state agencies to investigate.
Nancy Ahlswede, executive vice president of The Apartment Assn., California Southern Cities, a nonprofit organization that represents apartment owners in 47 cities, said problems often arise because many apartment owners are not educated in housing or discrimination law.
“Most of our owners are ‘mom and pops’ who own 20 units or less,” Ahlswede said. “Running the apartment is more an avocation than a vocation. . . . It’s like having a child--it doesn’t come with a set of instructions.”
As a result, owners and managers may take actions that blatantly discriminate, she said. At a recent workshop for apartment managers, Ahlswede said, a landlord stood up and said, “I only want to rent to people from India, because I have good experience with them.” And in Long Beach, an apartment building sported a banner that read “We want to rent to Filipinos.”
Apartment owners and managers who are new immigrants have an additional burden, she said. “A lot of the people who are immigrants are coming from places where housing was not codified or regulated.”
But fair-housing advocates say a manager’s ignorance of the law is often used as an excuse to discriminate.
“Lack of knowledge is a very small part of the problem,” said Janet Sohm, program compliance officer for the Fair Housing Congress of Southern California. “It’s just a racist society.”
This year, the apartment association and the Fair Housing Foundation began conducting joint bilingual workshops in an effort to educate tenants and landlords on their rights and responsibilities. The next workshop is scheduled for February in Norwalk.
Guide for Apartment Applicants
The Fair Housing Foundation offers a guide to apartment applicants to help them determine whether they have been discriminated against. The foundation advises prospective tenants to be suspicious if:
* Information given in person is different than that given on phone.
* You are told that a unit has been rented, but the rental sign is still posted.
* You are placed on a waiting list.
* A unit is available, but your deposit is refused.
* A landlord says he or she will call your references, but never contacts you.
GETTING HELP
* Apartment applicants who suspect discrimination should contact a fair housing council, file a complaint in small claims court or pursue further investigation through the U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the state Department of Fair Employment and Housing. Applicants can file discrimination suits through these agencies or through a private attorney, say housing advocates.
