Rental Housing Journal Metro
December 2013
2 MULTIFAMILY NW President's Letter
14 CLARK COUNTY RENTAL ASSOCIATION President's Message
3 D&Z THINK This Holiday Season
15 BLUESTONE & HOCKEY Changes in the Apartment Housing Market
6 DEAR MAINTENANCE MEN 8 SHOPTALK Creating a Sense of Urgency
16 RHA OF GREATER PORTLAD President's Message
10 IREM Breakfast Through the Eyes of a First Time Attendee
19 Are You Prepared For Winter?
11 POWER HOUR Property Management Mind Mapping…And Loving It!
METRO PORTLAND/VANCOUVER
Professional Publishing, Inc www.RentalHousingJournal.com
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Published in association with: METRO Multifamily Housing Association; Rental Housing Association of Oregon; IREM & Clark County Rental Association
Be A Giving Lessons from CT Fair Housing Case Landlord
I
n May 2013, Connecticut complainants were awarded over $76K (before attorneys’ fees) by the courts in The U.S.A v. Hylton. This is a rental case but the ruling holds several important legal lessons for any housing provider. The complaint alleged that the Hyltons, a Black married couple, violated the Fair Housing Act1 (FHA) by refusing to allow a mixed-race couple, the Bilbos, to sublet their unit to a Black woman with children because they did not want "too many Blacks" at the property.
The decision awarded the following damages: • $31,750 to Mr. And Mrs. Bilbo because their landlord made discriminatory statements to them about being a mixed-race couple, and about the race of their prospective subtenant refusing to allow them to sublet the home to an African American woman and her children because of race. • $10K of this sum was awarded for emotional distress. • Because Ms. Wilson, the prospective subtenant, was denied the home she sought and was qualified for, she continued to live in a racially concentrated area of poverty. Her damages were awarded at $44,431.05
• As part her damages, the court awarded Ms. Wilson $20K for compensation for the lost opportunity to live in a neighborhood of lower crime, higher educational opportunities, and greater upward mobility. • Nearly half of the judgment, before attorneys’ fees, was for punitive damages. • An additional $37,422 in attorneys’ fees brings the total judgment against the defendants to over $113K.
Details of the case can be found online. • A summary of the case is available on the HUD site: http:// portal.hud.gov/hudportal/ HUD?src=/press/press_releases_media_advisories/2011/ HUDNo.11-198. • A summary of the ruling is posted on the DOJ’s site: http:// www.justice.gov/usao/ct/ Press2013/20130812.html (DOJ). • The court’s decision can be read at http://law.justia.com/cases/ federal/district-courts/connecticut/ ctdce/3:2011cv01543/94677/23 The Hyltons were independent rental owners managing their own property. They initially rented to the Bilbos; however, the Bilbos found that their personal circumstances required them to move and to break the lease agreement. The Bilbos agreed to find a suitable renter to sublease to. When they did the defendant asked if the person is white. When told she was Black, Hylton stated that he “did not want
too many Blacks at the property” and that “the neighbors would not want to see too many Blacks there.” The defendant also told the Bilbos the only reason they were rented the house was because his wife is white and it was “a good mix.” There are several salient points in this case, none of them new but none-the-less noteworthy.
MRS. MURPHY’S EXEMPTION First, the housing providers in this case were ‘mom and pop’ landlords representing themselves. Their blatant disregard for the law and others’ civil rights is clear from the case but the harm they caused – to the complainants and to their own pocketbook – may have been avoided with fair housing education and / or by hiring a professional manager who’s practice it was to know and abide by all federal, state, and local laws. As their defense, the defendants argued they were not subject to the Fair Housing Act given what is commonly referred to as the ‘Mrs. Murphy’s Exemption’ which states: Any single-family house sold or rented by an owner provided that such private individual does not own more than three such singlefamily homes at anyone time… if such house is sold or rented (A) without the use in any manner of the sales or rental facilities or the sales or rental services of any real estate broker, agent, or salesman, or of such facilities or services of any person in the business of selling or renting dwellings… and (B) without the publication, posting or mailing, after notice of any advertisement or written notice in violation of [the FHA]. continued on page 7
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T
he holidays are a time of giving and also a time of thanks. To give to those, through gestures large and small, and thank others for their friendship, hard work, and good service. This holiday season I have decided to gift my tenants for their continued support and service. Many landlords may consider this notion an absurd waste of money., and that is certainly their prerogative. But, I look at gifting the residents differently. I see this gesture as similar to a tip or a bonus. You tip for good service even though you’ve already paid for the meal. Most of us appreciate bonuses this time of year in our paycheck even though we have already performed the job that is expected of us. So, in addition to providing a nice place to live, why not give them a “thank you” for helping pay your mortgage, insurance, and property taxes? I’m not talking about going in the red here. I have in mind a very corporate-like holiday card with a nice handwritten note inside. Included in these generic cards will be a gift card of no more than $10-$20 each for a local restaurant, coffee shop, or grocery store for which I will hand deliver. Hand delivered I said! Here is an opportunity to catch a glimpse of the outside of your property unannounced. Just because you’re doing something nice for the tenants does not mean you quit being a landlord. Now because I manage a small operation, this level of spending on continued on page 4
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