Investigation finds widespread discrimination against Section 8 tenants
in California
Send a link to a friend
[October 09, 2024]
LOS ANGELES (AP) — California tenants who held Section 8
housing vouchers were refused rental contracts by more than 200
landlords, including major real estate firms, according to an undercover
investigation that found widespread discrimination in the state.
The investigative nonprofit Housing Rights Initiative announced Tuesday
that it has filed complaints with the California Civil Rights
Department, alleging landlords violated a state law against denying
leases to renters who pay with vouchers. It seeks penalties against 203
companies and individuals.
The nonprofit is also pushing for more state funding to adequately
enforce the law, which Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom signed in 2019.
“This historic filing serves as an opportunity for the Governor and his
housing enforcement agency to enforce the very bill he signed into law
and hold violators accountable,” the Housing Rights Initiative said in a
statement.
Newsom's office referred comment on the filing to the state Civil Rights
Department. Rishi Khalsa, a department spokesperson, said the agency is
“deeply committed to using the tools at its disposal to combat
discrimination in housing.” The department has reached more than 200
settlements related to similar discrimination in recent years, Khalsa
said.
“We always welcome additional support to strengthen enforcement of civil
rights and we continue to work with a range of partners in those
efforts,” he said in an email Tuesday.
The goal of the Section 8 program, named for a component of the federal
Housing Act, is to keep rental properties affordable and prevent
homelessness, which has reached crisis levels in California. Under the
program, which has a long waiting list, tenants typically pay about 30%
of their income on rent, with the voucher covering the rest.
[to top of second column]
|
A boy walks past an apartment building as people gather around an
inflatable waterslide during a birthday party at the Nickerson
Gardens housing project in the Watts neighborhood of Los Angeles,
Wednesday, June 10, 2020. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)
Over the course of a year, undercover investigators posing as
prospective tenants reached out via text messages to landlords,
property managers and real estate agents to determine compliance
with California's fair housing laws. The investigation found voucher
holders were explicitly discriminated against 44% of the time in San
Francisco. Voucher denials took place in 53% of cases in Oakland,
58% in San Jose, and 70% in Los Angeles.
In one text message exchange, an agent with EXP Realty, a national
brokerage firm, tells an investigator posing as a prospective tenant
that utilities are included in the monthly rate for a rental unit.
When informed that the tenant has a Section 8 voucher, the agent
responds, “I don't work with that program," according to the
investigation.
In another exchange, a broker with Sotheby’s International Realty
replies to an investigator posing as a hopeful renter, “Oh sorry,
owner not accepting Section 8.”
Representatives for EXP and Sotheby's didn't immediately respond
Tuesday to emails seeking comment on the claims.
Kate Liggett, program director of Housing Rights Initiative,
estimates the filing represents just a fraction of discrimination
against Section 8 tenants in California.
"By exposing this widespread and harmful practice, we call on the
State to provide agencies like the California Civil Rights
Department with the resources they need to eradicate voucher
discrimination once and for all,” Liggett said in a statement.
All contents © copyright 2024 Associated Press. All rights reserved |