If you are a landlord, it demands careful attention to the laws and ordinances in your local jurisdiction.
Fair Chance Housing ordinances inspire regulatory measures in many parts of the country, some limiting a landlord’s ability to conduct tenant background checks. This post explores recent movements in fair chance housing and how landlords could approach the tenant application process.
These laws generally restrict property owners from inquiring about or considering an applicant's criminal history during the initial stages of the rental process.
Some states with Fair Chance Housing laws include:
Washington, DC, enacted legislation in 2017. Colorado, Illinois, and New York State passed fair chance housing laws in 2019. Several other states have introduced bills or are considering fair chance housing legislation.
The growing number of fair chance housing laws aim to reduce barriers to suitable and reliable housing for people with criminal records, a considerable obstacle to successful reintegration into the community.
The city of Manchester, Iowa, also recently implemented an Affirmative Fair Housing Policy. This policy aims to provide equal access to housing opportunities without discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, or familial status.
The most challenging aspect of fair chance laws for landlords is the variations between states. For example, the scope of coverage: the Jackson, Michigan ordinance only applies to landlords with five or more rental units. Lookback periods or the age of criminal records they may consider also differ between NYC and Jackson. Furthermore, procedural requirements and allowable denials vary. For instance, New York law allows landlords to consult sex offender registries, while the Jackson ordinance permits denying applicants with violent felonies, arson, or property damage convictions.
Recent developments regarding the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) for very low-income families, mature individuals, and those with disabilities to afford decent, safe, and sanitary housing in the private market will reopen the waiting list for the first time in 15 years in New York City in 2024.
However, some landlords argue that the voucher system unfairly burdens them and their private property. The vouchers include administrative burdens, such as inspection requirements, absent when landlords rent to tenants who can pay rent without government assistance.
There is no federal law that requires landlords to accept Section 8 vouchers, and many landlords do not do so. That practice has led local governments in some parts of the country, including Cleveland, Ohio and Providence, Rhode Island, to bar landlords from discriminating against prospective tenants because they pay with Section 8 vouchers.
In Iowa, a bill currently in the state legislature would strike down ordinances in Des Moines, Iowa City, and Marion that ban landlords from rejecting tenants because they receive federal housing assistance.
The debates over tenant background checks and federal housing vouchers have significant implications for landlords regarding which renting policies are legal. If you plan to turn a property you own into a rental, understand what the ordinances in your area say about tenant background screening, credit records, and Section 8 housing vouchers.
Due to the unsettled and varied scenarios, backgroundchecks.com discontinued providing our services for tenant screening and related credit reports effective September 2024. Because this is not a core market for us, we cannot support its rapidly growing regulatory burdens.