March 31, 2025
Every April, National Fair Housing Month marks the anniversary of the signing into law of the Fair Housing Act of 1968 (FHA). The legislation was passed in response to the civil rights movement and the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr., and it aimed to eliminate discrimination in housing, ensuring that all people have access to safe and affordable homes, regardless of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, familial status, or disability.
In 2025, Fair Housing Month remains as important as ever. While progress has been made in fighting housing discrimination, the work to ensure equal housing opportunities for all continues.
1. What Does Housing Discrimination Look Like?
Despite decades of effort to address housing inequality, discrimination is still rampant in many areas. Studies from organizations like the National Fair Housing Alliance show that people of color, individuals with disabilities, and those from marginalized communities face significantly higher barriers when it comes to accessing housing.
Housing discrimination can take many forms, including:
- Redlining: When banks and insurance companies deny services or investments to certain neighborhoods, often based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, familial status, or disability (“protected characteristics”).
- Steering: When real estate agents guide homebuyers or renters towards or away from certain neighborhoods based on their protected characteristics.
- Unfair eviction practices: When landlords or property managers use discriminatory tactics to evict tenants, particularly those from marginalized communities.
- Discriminatory lending: When banks or mortgage lenders deny loans or offer unfavorable terms to borrowers based on an applicant’s protected characteristics.
2. Fair Housing Includes Access to Affordable Housing & Vouchers
The lack of affordable housing across the nation has reached crisis level. With the cost of living and job insecurity on the rise, particularly in urban areas, many individuals and families are struggling to find housing they can afford.
This housing crisis disproportionately affects communities of color, thereby limiting access to good schools and more diverse cultural experiences and perpetuating racial segregation.
According to the National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC), 70% of all extremely low income families spend more than half their income on rent while only 1 in 4 extremely low income families who need assistance receive it.
NLIHC, in partnership with the National Women’s Law Center, also found that 74% of households that use federal rental assistance programs, including Housing Choice Vouchers, are headed by women. In 2023, federal housing assistance lifted the incomes of 364,000 Black, non-Hispanic women, 333,000 Latinas, 930,000 Asian women out of poverty.
Fair Housing Month serves as a reminder of the importance of the Housing Choice Voucher Program, administered by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), which provides rental assistance to eligible families and individuals.
What Do Housing Vouchers Cover?
Housing vouchers, such as those provided through HUD, typically cover a portion of a tenant’s rent, based on income and family size, as well as market rates. The tenant is responsible for paying the difference between the voucher amount and the total rent.
- Landlord’s Obligations: Landlords who accept housing vouchers must comply with local housing quality standards. They are responsible for maintaining the property and ensuring it meets safety and health standards. They also must work with the local authority to submit payment requests and report any issues.
- Local Housing Authority’s Obligations: Local housing authorities administer voucher programs locally, providing families in need with housing assistance, and helping facilitate the lease and payments to the landlord or property manager. They also work to ensure landlords and property managers comply with federal and state fair housing and voucher guidelines.
In some jurisdictions, it is also unlawful for housing providers to discriminate based on “source-of-income,” such as the use of a housing voucher. See a list of the states and localities where such discrimination is unlawful.
Unfortunately, even in those jurisdictions with statutes protecting against “source-of-income” discrimination, voucher discrimination by some landlords, property management companies, and real estate agents persist, necessitating investigations by local housing authorities and often litigation.
3. Fair Housing Means the Right to Safe, Habitable Living Conditions
Another objective of Fair Housing Month is to remind the public about the scope of their rights. In addition to access to housing, everyone has the right to a safe, healthy, and secure living environment. A place to call home. For adults and children, this is a crucial right and essential for maintaining dignity and quality of life.
What Does Safe, Habitable Living Conditions Mean?
“Safe, habitable living conditions” refers to an environment or space where individuals can live without the risk of harm to their health, safety, or well-being. It encompasses several key factors that ensure a place is suitable for long-term living.
The National Low Income Housing Coalition’s State and Local Innovation recently published the Code Enforcement and Habitability Standards Toolkit, which provides a comprehensive overview on habitability standards, laws, and policies.
4. Fair Housing Resources States and local communities play an important role in enforcing fair housing laws. For instance, these laws are enforced by state human rights commissions, local housing authorities, and fair housing organizations. These entities ensure compliance with the FHA and state-specific laws that prohibit discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, disability, familial status, or national origin, along with other protected characteristics like “source of income” (use of a housing voucher) in certain jurisdictions.