HUD Invokes Fair Housing Act Against Parking Lot Owners

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has charged the owners and managers of Heritage Point Mobile Home Park in Montgomery, Alabama for violating the Fair Housing Act by refusing to rent a lot in the park to an African American family.

"Refusing to rent a lot effectively denies a mobile home dweller a place to live," said John Trasvina, HUD Assistant Secretary for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity. "The Fair Housing Act protects families from discrimination based on race or national origin."

The charges have been slapped on Lawrence at Lakewood, LLC, and Lawrence Properties, Inc; Michael Lawrence, CEO of both companies; and William Bounds, district supervisor for four mobile home parks, including Heritage Point, a statement said.

The discrimination occurred when Bounds told his employees that he did not want African Americans residing in his mobile home parks. This led to employees refusing to process an African American family's application to rent the lot. It is alleged that the application was refused citing results from a credit check that was not made.

It is unlawful to deny housing based on discrimination. But a report from non-profit housing organizations show that discrimination against people with disabilities and those involving race are still prevalent in the country.

"It is a travesty that we still see so much discrimination in our country more than 40 years after that passage of the Fair Housing Act," stated Shanna L Smith, president and CEO of the National Fair Housing Alliance. "No one profits when potential homebuyers or renters are turned away, not because of their ability to purchase or pay, but because of their national origin, skin color, sex, religion, familial status or because of a disability."

In 2011, 44 percent of housing discrimination cases involved discrimination against people with disabilities and 19 percent involved discrimination against race. National Fair Housing Alliance stated that about 27,092 housing discrimination complaints were filed across the nation in 2011.

Statistics from the HUD's Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity and its partners in the Fair Housing Assistance Program show that close to 10,000 housing discrimination complaints are lodged annually.