Real Estate Chapter 9

Civil Rights Act of 1866

A federal law that prohibits all discrimination on the basis of race.

Fair Housing Act of 1968

A federal prohibition that protects buyer/renter of a dwelling from seller/landlord discrimination with regards to race, color, religion, gender, national origin, familial status, or disability.

Non-Solicitation Order

A rule adopted by the Secretary of State which prohibits any or all types of solicitation directed towards homeowners within a defined geographic area. Such rule may be adopted after a public hearing and upon the Secretary's determination that homeowners within the subject area have been subject to intense and repeated solicitations by real estate brokers or salespersons and that such solicitations have caused owners to reasonably believe that property values may decrease because persons of different race, ethnic, religious or social backgrounds are moving or about to move into such area.

Familial Status

A single person, pregnant woman or a household with children under 18 living with parents or legal custodians who might experience housing discrimination. Filtering Down - The decline in value of properties in neighborhoods that were once middle or upper-middle income.

Americans with Disabilities Act

A wide-ranging civil rights law enacted by the U.S. Congress in 1990, that prohibits, under certain circumstances, discrimination based on disability.

Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)

Established in 1965, HUD works to create a decent home and suitable living environment for all Americans; it does this by addressing housing needs, improving and developing American communities, and enforcing fair housing laws.

Jones vs. Mayer Supreme Court Decision (1968)

Held that Congress could regulate the sale of private property in order to prevent racial discrimination. Bars all racial discrimination, private as well as public, in the sale or rental of property, and that the statute, thus construed, is a valid exercise of the power of Congress to enforce the 13th Amendment.

Marital Status

Indicated whether the person is married. The only possible answers are "married" or "single".

N.Y. State Human Rights Law

Protects individuals from the discrimination based on their age, creed, race, color, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, marital status, disability, military status, domestic violence victim status, arrest record, conviction record, predisposing genetic characteristics, and familial status.

Disability / Handicap

The consequence of an impairment that may be physical, cognitive, mental, sensory, emotional, developmental, or some combination of these.

Steering

The practice in which real estate brokers guide prospective home buyers towards or away from certain neighborhoods based on their race. Steering is highly illegal.

Blockbusting

The practice of inducing homeowners in a particular neighborhood to sell their homes quickly, often at below market prices, by creating the fear that the entry of a minority group or groups into the neighborhood will cause a precipitous decline in property values.

Red-Lining

The refusal to lend money within a specific area for various reasons. This practice is illegal.

Cease and Desist List

Upon the establishment of a cease and desist zone by the Secretary, a list of homeowners who have filed owner's statements expressing their wish not to be solicited by real estate brokers or salesperson. Soliciting of listed homeowners by licensees is prohibited. Violators of such prohibition are subject to licensure suspensions or revocation.

Testers

Volunteers from state or private agencies who enforce fair housing by claiming to be home seekers, thereby finding out if brokers deal fairly with all clients/customers.