Three Simple Steps to Fair Housing Compliance

Jody OBrien

Today’s PresentationWWW.Slideshare.net/ReEducationCompany

Bricks and Mortar Offices

Management by Walking Around

Virtual Offices

Virtual Management

Your Virtual Office is open 24/7 World Wide

Fair Housing Violation Goes Viral

Learn the Law

Protected ClassesFederal and State

• Race• Color• Religion• National Origin • Familial Status• Handicap • Sex

• Sexual orientation• Gender identity• Age• Marital status• Children• Public assistance

Prohibited Behavior• Steering

o The illegal practice of directing a member of a protected class towards or away from a particular area or neighborhood.

o Steering is often subtly and difficult to detect, homeseekers can be unaware that their choices have been limited. Words, phrases or actions that are intended to influence the choices of a prospective buyer are discriminatory actions.

• Segregated Facilities

Prohibited Behavior• Discriminatory Advertising

o no one can make, print or publish discriminatory ads including those who are exempt

• Ads that contain words, phrases, symbols or visuals that indicate a discriminatory preference or limitation.

• Ads that selectively use media, human models, logos and locations to indicate an illegal preference or limitation

• Refusal to publish ads because of protected class.

Communications Decency Act and

Digital Millennium Copyright Act

• CDAo Passive website operator

• DMCAoNo actual knowledgeoNot aware of infringement oNo financial benefito remove the infringing content immediatelyo provides a means of notification of

infringement

Fair Housing• Code of Ethics• Article 10Realtors® shall not deny equal professional services to any person for reasons of race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, national origin, sexual orientation, or gender identity. Realtors® shall not be parties to any plan or agreement to discriminate against a person or persons on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, national origin, sexual orientation, or gender identity. (Amended 1/14)

Realtors®, in their real estate employment practices, shall notdiscriminate against any person or persons on the basis of race,color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, national origin, sexual orientation, or gender identity. (Amended 1/14)

Fair Housing

Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage

Jack Conway

Check Your Listings

Online advertising and Fair Housing

What are agents saying?

On-line advertising• Craigslist

o Steering or thiso Cautionary

• Realtor.com• Yahoo• Zillow• Specialty web sites• Social Media

Apply the Information

Write Great Ads• List five great features about the property

• List five benefits of each feature

• Create three attention grabbing headlines about

the property (remember not people)

• Tell a story, create a visual and awaken emotion

• Close with a call to action

• Need help?

The FormulaHeadline

Opening StatementDescription

Offer/PromotionCall to Action

• Create all advertising about the property• Don’t talk about the PEOPLE who

oWould live thereoCould live thereo Should live thereoDo live thereoCan’t live there

Best Practices• Display the Fair Housing Poster in your Place of

Business• Use the Equal Housing logo in advertising and

websites

Best Practices

• Create office policy on advertising• Review office policy on advertising

http://www.realtor.org/field-guides/field-guide-to-real-estate-office-policy-manuals

Best Practices• Distribute a list of Inappropriate words to use in

ads• Review ads for the above language• Eyes on the Folder• Require conduct yearly training (can be a

requirement of lower cost E&O)

 Jody O’Brien The RE/Education CompanyCommitted to Professionalism in Real Estate through Education

Blogwww.reeducator.wordpress.comPresentationwww.slideshare.net/ReEducationCompany Social Mediawww.twitter.com/reeducatorwww.youtube.com/msreeducatorwww.facebook.com/reeducatorwww.linkedin.com/in/reeducator

Thank you for Attending