How Much Do We Know About Fair Housing Laws?

The Federal Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, sex, familial status, and disability. A new HUD report, entitled "How Much Do We Know? Public Awareness of the Nation's Fair Housing Laws," presents the results of the first national survey and analysis of public awareness of fair housing laws. The report indicates that although knowledge of and support for Federal fair housing laws is widespread, some areas of the law are understood better than others.

The Survey
Researchers collected responses from 1,001 people, using a survey consisting of 10 brief scenarios. Eight scenarios involve conduct that is illegal under Federal fair housing law, and the remaining two concern conduct not covered by Federal law. Respondents were asked if they believed the conduct in each of the scenarios to be legal or illegal under Federal law, and whether they personally approved of it. The survey also queried whether the public supports laws that prohibit homeowners from refusing to sell based on a buyer's race, religion, or nationality. Finally, the survey asked whether respondents felt they had personally experienced discrimination in the sale or rental of housing, and if so, what action they took in response.

Fair Housing Protections for Families Not Well Understood
Although the results of the survey indicate that knowledge of and support for most fair housing protections and prohibitions is widespread, there are two scenarios about which the public is generally uninformed. First, only 38 percent of the respondents were aware that treating families with children any differently from households without children is generally illegal. Second, 79 percent of the respondents did not know that a landlord may legally reject a rental applicant on the basis of bad housekeeping habits.

The Majority of the Public Support Fair Housing Protections
The public is aware of the fair housing law, but does it support the law? The survey results indicate that the majority of people are in favor of fair housing laws. In seven of the eight scenarios depicting unlawful conduct, majorities believe that landlords, sellers, real estate agents, or mortgage lenders should not engage in such conduct. In addition, two-thirds of the respondents would vote for laws that prohibit homeowners from refusing to sell based on a buyer's race, religion, or nationality.

Few Take Action Against Perceived Housing Discrimination
Although the survey did not quantitatively assess the extent of housing discrimination, respondents were asked whether they felt that they had ever been discriminated against when trying to buy or rent a house or apartment. Fourteen percent of the respondents, more than 28 million people, believed that they had experienced some form of housing discrimination. Of that 14 percent, the majority took no action in response to the perceived discrimination. Less than one-fifth of the people took action, and most of them simply complained to the person who they believed discriminated against them.

Implications for Outreach Strategies and Research
The survey was not designed to establish causality between public awareness of fair housing laws and non-discriminatory practices. The results, however, do not contradict the presumption that there is some association among public awareness of the law, its recognition of conduct perceived to conflict with the law, and its willingness to respond to such conduct.

The relationship between individual attitudes and awareness has important implications for structuring effective fair housing education programs. For example, one-fifth of the public approves of many instances of discriminatory conduct while being unaware that much of that conduct is unlawful. Disseminating information about fair housing laws could modify attitudes among this group. An outreach strategy centered on awareness might not, however, change the attitudes of the 13 percent of the public who approve of discriminatory conduct despite their knowledge that the conduct is illegal.

The results support the need for continued efforts to promote better public understanding of personal rights and responsibilities under the fair housing law. The results also indicate a need for targeted programs to educate the public on certain sections of the law and to structure educational strategies differently, depending on the knowledge and attitudes of the audience. Additionally, the report highlights a need to explore why so few people take action in response to perceived housing discrimination and the implications of this finding for the complaint and enforcement process.

"How Much Do We Know? Public Awareness of the Nation's Fair Housing Laws" is available for $5.00 from HUD USER. Please use the order form. You can also download it from the HUD USER Web site at www.huduser.gov.