Law Offices of Stuart E. Fagan | Housing Discrimination and Tenant Rights Lawyer in San Diego, California

Do Tenants Have Rights?

Stuart Fagan — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 11:48:43 +0000

“I’ve got my rights,” actors say in the movies all the time as the police arrest them. But have you ever stopped to think: what rights do I have? We’ve all heard of the Miranda rights that are read to people as they are being arrested. “You have the right to remain silent (don’t you wish your neighbor would exercise that one!) . . .” The Miranda rights are what as known as criminal rights. But when it comes to tenants’ rights, then we are dealing with civil rights. Civil rights, essentially, are rights that you have as a member of our society that are separate and distinct from your criminal rights. But what civil rights do tenants have? In the fair housing context, tenants have the civil right to live in a place that is free of discrimination because of race, religion, sex, familial status, etc. So the next time that you hear of a civil rights lawsuit, realize that it may be something as simple as a landlord refusing to rent an upstairs apartment to a family with children.

Are Mobile Home Parks Covered Under Housing Discrimination Laws?

Stuart Fagan — Sun, 18 Mar 2012 11:48:48 +0000

Are mobile home parks governed by any housing discrimination laws? Absolutely. The federal Fair Housing Act protects all “dwellings,” which is defined to include mobile home parks that are occupied as, or designed or intended for occupancy as, a residence by one of more families. So if you live in a mobile home park, and your landlord starts telling you things such as, “Hey, can you stop having your black visitors come over; they’re scaring my tenants,” then get in touch with the Law Offices of Stuart E. Fagan at www.sfaganlaw.com.

Get Inside, Now!

Stuart Fagan — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 11:54:53 +0000

All too often it happens. A child is playing in the common areas of an apartment complex and he or she lets out a shout of excitement. The next thing you know, out comes the apartment manager and he or she tells the child to “Get inside, now! There is no screaming out here!” Is this wrong? In most cases, yes, it is wrong. But what can be done about it? Recently I heard from a tenant in Los Angeles whose children were forbidden from riding their bikes in the complex’s driveway, for they were supposedly disturbing one of the tenants who worked nights. As a result, the manager refused to let the children ride their bikes on the property. To make matters worse, the children were under ten years old and lived on a busy street. As such, the tenants had to choose between forbidding their children from riding their bikes on the premises and letting them ride on the sidewalk next to a busy street. In that case, the landlord was preventing children from enjoying the use of the premises because of the landlord’s desire to let the adult tenant sleep. In other words, the landlord was giving preference to the adult. In law, we call that discrimination.

Merry Christmas?

Stuart Fagan — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 11:49:04 +0000

Voltaire, the French writer and historian, said it best: “I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.” Yes, Christmas and Hanukkah are just around the corner. And, yes, the past few years have shown us that just around the corner are landlord-tenant disputes over the display of signs that say “Merry Christmas” or “Happy Hanukkah” or “Season’s Greetings.” But does the Fair Housing Act (“FHA”) apply to such claims? Is it wrong for a landlord to forbid tenants from putting up signs in their windows that have a religious message? In October, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals answered the first question in the affirmative, stating, “In our view, the FHA does apply to [such] discrimination . . .” Committee Concerning Community v. Modesto, Case No. 07-16715 (9th Cir. Oct. 8, 2009) at *14397. The Ninth Circuit’s decision is encouraging, for some of our nation’s highest courts have held that the Fair Housing Act does not apply to such claims. In time, it appears that the U.S. Supreme Court will have to intervene and determine the issue once and for all.

In the meantime, what happens if a tenant’s landlord says, “Take down the picture of the menorah in your window?” or “You cannot tack to your door a sign that says ‘Merry Christmas’ or ‘Happy Birthday, Jesus’ because it might offend someone?” Do the landlord’s statements violate the Fair Housing Act?

For over 11 years, I have been fighting on behalf of tenants whose rights have been violated under the Fair Housing Act and related California laws, including the Fair Employment & Housing Act. This holiday season, I am gearing up for such battles. So if you need such special attention, then, please, contact me, and I’ll take care of the problem. Until then, if you would like to see a list of FAQs regarding the Fair Housing Act, then please visit my new website athttp://www.sfaganlaw.com./ If I can answer any questions, please, do not hesitate to contact me at (858) 220-9601.

Do Grandparents Have Rights?

Stuart Fagan — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 21:40:00 +0000

When Andrea was two years old, she went to live with her grandparents on a full-time basis. She had lived with them for eleven years when her grandparents moved to an apartment complex in Los Angeles County. Shortly after living at the complex, her grandparents were told by the manager that Andrea was not allowed to be outside at anytime without adult supervision. Andrea’s grandparents objected to the rule, finding it ridiculous that a teenager couldn’t be outside alone, but they told Andrea, on that occasion to come inside. As the weeks went by, the manager kept harassing Andrea about being outside without adult supervision and eventually threatened her grandparents with eviction if Andrea were caught outside alone again. Have Andrea and her grandparents been discriminated against? Well, the Fair Housing Act protects families with children, but does that include a grandchild living with her grandparents? The short answer is that the discriminatory actions are wrong because they were taken because of the age of a child. The fact that Andrea’s grandparents were injured because of those discriminatory actions enables them to file a claim against the landlord.

No Biking, No Skateboarding, No Playing Outside

Stuart Fagan — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 20:58:00 +0000

As the years have gone by, more and more landlords in California have come to realize that it is actually illegal to discriminate against families with children. But it does not mean that all landlords have stopped discriminating against families with children. Instead, what it means is that landlords are becoming more subtle about discriminating against children. For example, many landlords who used to have written rules that said things such as, “Children may not ride their bikes or skateboards in the common areas,” have now changed their rules to say, “No one may ride their bikes or skateboards in the common areas.” Are the landlords still trying to accomplish the same goal? Absolutely! But they are not being blatant about it. Why not? Because they don’t want to get in trouble for making statements that indicate limitations or discrimination based on familial status (i.e., against children). But are their modified statements illegal? While their statements do not violate a certain portion of the Fair Housing Act, the statements may violate a different portion of the Fair Housing Act. If you have any questions, please, visit our website at www.sfaganlaw.com.

What?!! It’s gone?!!

Stuart Fagan — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 20:09:00 +0000

Paul and Hope, a mixed racial couple, had no trouble finding an apartment, for Hope, who is white, went into the office alone and asked for an application to rent. Paul was at work at the time. “Oh, honey, we have a wonderful one bedroom apartment that would suit you and your husband just fine,” the manager, Betsy, said to Hope. She then proceeded to take Hope over to look at the apartment. It looked perfect to Hope. It was just what she and her husband were looking for: near the freeway and close to work. “How much is it?” “For you, it would be $700. And I’ll throw in $200 off the first month’s rent.” The price sounded right, so Hope asked Betsy if she could quickly call her husband. “Sure, go ahead. I’ll meet you back at the rental office. I’ll just be doing some paperwork.” As such, Hope stepped out of the apartment and called Paul. After she and Paul talked, they agreed that Hope should get an application and put a down payment on the apartment. Hope thus walked back over to the office and asked Betsy for an application and to give her a down payment. “You look trustworthy, dear. But go ahead an fill it out anyway, so that I don’t get into trouble with my boss. The down payment will be $100. That will hold the apartment for five days.” With that, Hope filled out the application and gave her a check for $100. Before leaving, Hope asked if she and Paul could come by to see the apartment later that evening. “No problem, but I’ll only be here until six o’clock.”

When Paul got off work, he and Hope came to look at the apartment. They arrived around 5:30 p.m. and went into the office. “Hi, Betsy. This is my husband, Paul.” Suddenly a look of horror came over Betsy’s face when she saw that Paul was African American. “Oh, it is nice to meet you, Paul, but I have terrible news for you.” “What’s wrong?” asked Hope. “Just after you left, another couple came by and rented that apartment. I’m so sorry.” “But I gave you a $100 check to hold it for five days,” said Hope in disbelief. “Yes, but the check had not cleared yet, so my boss told me to just go ahead and rent it to the other couple and to place you guys on a waiting list.” “That doesn’t seem fair,” chimed in Paul, “we were here first.” “I know. I know. But our policy is that if someone has cash in hand, then we do not turn them down.”

Something wasn’t right, and Paul and Hope knew it, but they didn’t know what to do. Unbeknownst to Paul and Hope, there was not another couple seeking to rent the apartment. Rather, Betsy was discriminating against them because of Paul’s race. Betsy, briefly stated, was violating the Fair Housing Act by refusing to rent the apartment to Paul and Hope.

If you have experienced similar treatment, then, please, visit www.sfaganlaw.com to see how we can help. We help tenants (and those seeking apartments) from San Diego to Los Angeles to Fresno to Sacramento to Oakland to San Francisco, and all over the State of California.