HUD Charges Homeowners’ Association with Race and Color Discrimination

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced today that it is charging a homeowners association with housing discrimination for enacting rules designed to effectively remove Black residents utilizing housing choice vouchers from a community in the Town of Providence Village. HUD's Charge alleges that the respondents' actions were based on race and color. The Charge further alleges that the respondents filed retaliatory legal action designed to intimidate residents' safety for exercising their fair housing rights and failed to act when heightened racial tensions left complainants fearing for their safety. Read the Charge.

The Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination because of race and color. The Act also makes it unlawful to intimidate or threaten a person for engaging in a protected activity such as filing a fair housing complaint with HUD.

"No resident should be subjected to housing discrimination based on their race and color or face adverse action for asserting their legal rights," said Diane M. Shelley, HUD's Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity. "This Charge demonstrates HUD's commitment to enforcing the full breadth of the Fair Housing Act and making sure all residents have access to fair housing."

In July 2021, following an increase in Black people moving into the Town of Providence Village, members of the town's unofficial social media groups began lamenting the increase and blamed Black residents for a perceived decrease in property value and increase in crime. Both Respondents Dautrich and Watson belonged to the town's unofficial social media groups. The group's posts presumed the Black residents were "on Section 8" and led to the Providence Homeowners Association's enactment of rules preventing homeowners from renting to housing voucher holders, 93% of whom are Black.

"The Fair Housing Act bars homeowners associations, just like landlords, from denying housing opportunities based on race," said Benjamin B. Klubes, HUD's Acting General Counsel. "HUD will not tolerate homeowners associations instituting discriminatory policies."

HUD's Charge of Discrimination comes after dozens of complaints were filed by two housing authorities, eleven Providence Village landlords, four residents who opposed the rules, and 40 voucher holders whose families include more than 75 minor children. The Charge alleges that Providence Homeowners Association twice enacted these rules to reduce the number of Black families in the town, despite increased racial tensions and concerns about the rules' racist inferences.

A United States Administrative Law Judge will hear HUD's Charge unless any party to the Charge elects to have the case heard in federal district court. If an administrative law judge finds, after a hearing, that discrimination has occurred, they may award damages to the complainants for their losses as a result of the discrimination. The judge may also order injunctive relief and other equitable relief, to deter further discrimination, as well as payment of attorney fees. In addition, the judge may impose civil penalties to vindicate the public interest. If the federal court hears the case, the judge may also award punitive damages to the complainants.

People who believe they have experienced discrimination may file a complaint by contacting HUD's Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity at (800) 669-9777 (voice) or (800) 877-8339 (Relay).

Housing discrimination complaints may also be filed by going to hud.gov/fairhousing.

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