Fair housing testing is an essential tool for ensuring that property owners and managers comply with fair housing laws. The practice involves sending testers, who pose as potential renters, to assess whether landlords and property managers are engaging in discriminatory practices. As a landlord or property manager, it’s crucial to be prepared for when a tester comes to call. In this article, we’ll explore who can be a tester and the common methods they employ. We’ll also share tips to help ensure that you don’t fail your fair housing test.
Who Can Be a Tester and Where Can They Test?
Testers can come from various backgrounds and organizations. They can work for state fair housing departments, private fair housing advocacy groups, or the Department of Justice. Regardless of who they work for, their goal is to ascertain whether landlords and property managers are following the law and are fair housing compliant.
Testers use leading questions to target known trouble spots within the industry. Vague or leading questions should immediately set off warning bells in your mind that you are talking to a tester. You need to be sure that you are not saying or doing anything that could be interpreted as a violation.
Where might you come across a tester? Essentially, any place a potential renter would cross paths with a leasing agent can be a testing ground. Testers employ all forms of contact, including phone, email, social media outlets, and on-site visits. By far, though, the phone is the most widely used as it is the most cost- and time-efficient. Let’s consider two common topics used by telephone testers.
What Are Your Pet Policies?
One of the most common topics used in testing is about animals or pets. Testers will give just enough information to see how you or your staff respond. For example, a person calls in and says they are interested in your property but want to make sure their dog would be allowed, and the dog is a German Shepherd. It’s essential to note that the person said “their dog,” not “their pet.”
By assuming that the dog is a pet and wouldn’t pass your breed restriction policy, you could be setting yourself up for a fair housing complaint. Best practices dictate that pet policies can be discussed as long as assistance-animal policies are also shared. Along with that, it is always a good policy to encourage the person to come in and fill out an application, as that is what will genuinely determine eligibility.
Is Your Property Accessible?
Another common question during fair housing testing is about accessibility. Consider this scenario, a person calls in and asks if the property is accessible because they require the use of mobility aids. It’s crucial to note that even if a property is not very accessible, and you have the best of intentions, you should never disclose this information and should avoid recommending more accessible properties. This can appear as discrimination and steering, which are violations of fair housing laws.
The correct response is to encourage them to visit the property’s website to see more images and arrange for a tour if they wish. You should never discourage a potential renter from coming in to take a tour or fill out an application under any circumstances.
Tips to Help Ensure You Pass Your Fair Housing Test
Educate yourself and your team: Proper training is key to ensuring fair housing compliance. It’s essential to educate yourself and your team on fair housing laws, including federal, state, and local laws. Make sure you are familiar with protected classes and any exemptions that may apply to your property.
Have clear policies and procedures: Develop clear policies and procedures for renting your property, including pet policies and assistance-animal policies. Make sure they are easily accessible to anyone who needs them.
Document everything: Document everything, including conversations with potential renters and any decisions you make regarding their eligibility. This documentation can be helpful in case of a fair complaint.
These are just a few topics that can come up during a fair housing test, but anything related to fair housing can be utilized. Regardless of whether you agree with testing and the tactics testers are legally allowed to use, fair housing training is key to ensuring fair housing compliance.
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The terms and conditions of a renting arrangement between a landlord and a tenant are set forth in a rental agreement or a lease, both of which are legal documents. Rental agreements should always be in writing, but short term agreements may be legal even if verbal. Despite having a comparable function and although both terms are often being used interchangeably, the two differ in a few ways:
Duration: A rental agreement is normally a short-term arrangement with no set expiration date, commonly lasting from month to month. Unless cancelled by either side, it automatically renews at the end of each rental period, unless proper notice of cancellation is given (typically thirty days, but sometimes longer). A lease, on the other hand, is a long-term agreement with a set duration that may be six months, a year, or even many years. Both parties are obligated to abide by the terms for the whole term of the lease, which has a start and end date. Typically, neither party can cancel a lease prior to the expiration of the term.
Flexibility: Both landlords and tenants have more options when it comes to rental agreements. With adequate notice, often 30 days, either side may usually dissolve the agreement, allowing for a more flexible leasing situation. Contrarily, leases provide more stability and security for both parties, because the terms and conditions are set for the full life of the lease.
A rental agreement typically allows the landlord to raise the rate at the conclusion of each rental period, subject to any applicable local rent control regulations or restrictions. However, rent is often fixed under a lease agreement for the duration of the lease, giving the tenant more stability in their housing expenditures. Multiple year leases will typically also have set rental increases built into them, giving both the tenant and the landlord safety in knowing exactly what the rental amounts will be, as opposed to possibly having large swings in rent on a short term rental agreement.
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Renewal: Unless either party requests a termination, rental agreements are typically automatically renewed at the conclusion of each rental period. Normally, in order to extend the tenancy after the first period has ended, a lease must be actively renewed by both parties. This can entail entering into a new lease or switching to a month-to-month rental arrangement.
Termination: It is frequently necessary to provide the opposing party with a particular notice time, usually 30 days, in order to terminate a rental agreement, but sometimes it can be longer. Contrarily, if you want to end a lease before the end of the agreed-upon period, you usually need to follow a more official procedure. Prematurely ending a lease may result in fees or the need to satisfy specific requirements stipulated in the lease agreement, potentially paying all of the future rents as well.
It’s crucial to remember that local rules and regulations may have an impact on the terms of rental agreements and leases. Before signing or making a commitment, it is always advised to carefully read and comprehend, or have an attorney review, the conditions of any agreement to rent/lease a property.
Source: Multifamily Insiders
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Part 2 on Rental Property Insurance!
Last episode, we went over the nuts and bolts of residential rental property insurance. We talked all about house hackers, single family home rentals, all the way up to multi-family units and what kind of coverage was important to each circumstance.
Part 2 is where we bring in the professional and interview our broker and insurance agent, Ryan Bravo.
Ryan and his brother Michael have been in insurance since the early 2000’s and took over their father’s booming insurance brokerage when he passed suddenly. These two are killing it in the insurance industry.
They’ve won countless awards and are among the top 150 Farmers Insurance agencies in the country. Kevin and I are so lucky to have these guys on our team, for home and for business!
Here’s what we discussed with Ryan:
▪️ The current state of the insurance industry and why many agencies are pulling out of states with a high risk of natural disasters.
▪️ The basics of a rental property policy and what it covers and does NOT. Plus, what are some riders or endorsements rental property owners should consider adding to their policies.
▪️ Umbrella polices, who should have one? Also, are they needed with the protection of an LLC?
▪️ He gave advice to a listener who submitted a question what to do after losing his insurance after filing a large claim.
▪️ Lastly, he gave five questions rental property owners should be asking new insurance agents when interviewing them. This is common if you purchase your rentals out of state…
There was A LOT of useful information from the perspective of an insurance agent in this episode.
Give it a listen and if you love it, will you please do us a favor and leave a kind review on your favorite podcast platform? This will really help our little podcast grow and reach other DIY landlords.
How to get in touch with Ryan Bravo:
Email: Ryan@TheBravoAgency.com
Webpage: https://BravoInsuranceAgency.com
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