CW: Ableism, Racism, & Homelessness
The Division of Civil Rights in New Jersey is looking into imposing fines for landlords and property managers. There are currently eight incidents of alleged discrimination against disabled renters that The Division of Civil Rights in New Jersey is investigating.
The division recently announced that housing providers in Bergen, Burlington, Camden, Ocean, and Union counties reportedly refused to rent to residents, refused to provide accessible parking places, or ignored reported harassment at their homes.
“In New Jersey, the strong protections offered by our Law Against Discrimination mean you don’t have to face housing discrimination because of your disability,” Attorney General Matthew Platkin said in a statement. “The enforcement actions we are announcing today reflect our office’s ongoing commitment to putting a stop to disability discrimination across our state.”
The conclusions follow preliminary investigations that revealed a “reasonable suspicion” of infractions. The division stated that additional adjudication is still required. If several offenses are discovered, the state may impose fines of up to $50,000 per incident.
In Camden County New Jersey, an owner of a unit in the Cooper Building “reneged on a lease agreement with a potential tenant due to the individual’s disability,” according to authorities. According to the state, the lease was offered . Subsequently,it was revoked during an in-person visit during which the potential tenant’s disability was clear.
In another incident, that took place in Burlington County, the state determined that Penn Properties Management Co., failed to fix mold and electrical issues that endangered the health of a disabled tenant. Penn Properties Management Co. had already received 19 notices of violation earlier this year.
Unfortunately, housing discrimination is all too common nationwide. The 2022 Fair Housing Trends Report revealed that disability-related discrimination accounted for more than half of all complaints (53.68%). Therefore disability related discrimination was the most frequent kind of complaint. Racial discrimination was the second most reported type of housing discrimination accounting for 18.97% of all complaints.
Racial and disability related discrimination often intersect. Black and Indigenous people are more likely to have a disability than the general population. The poverty rate among Black disabled people is more than three times that of the general non-disabled population. All of this demonstrates that disabled people of color, particularly the Black disabled population, are at risk of becoming priced out of housing.
Disabled people face discrimination daily. Everyone deserves to have a safe, clean, place to live. Disabled people have the right to live in an environment that meets their needs, and they shouldn’t be discriminated against when looking for housing.
Sources:
Goodman, Nannette., et al. ‘Financial Inequality: Disability, Race and Poverty in America. 2019’. Retrieved February, vol. 3, 2021, p. 2023.
Myers, Gene. “NJ Condo and Apartment Owners Discriminated against Tenants with Disabilities, State Says.” NorthJersey.Com, Gannett, 29 July 2024, http://www.northjersey.com/story/news/2024/07/29/nj-disability-discrimination-in-housing/74529723007/.
Woodruff, Izzy. “New Report Reveals Record Number of Housing Discrimination Complaints .” NFHA, National Fair Housing Alliance, 30 Nov. 2022, nationalfairhousing.org/new-report-reveals-record-number-of-housing-discrimination-complaints/