Fair Housing Center

Enforcement of Fair Housing civil rights laws: we provide free assistance for victims of Housing discrimination by investigating claims of discrimination, informing victims of their rights, contacting Housing providers to negotiate resolutions, filing legal claims, training individuals and Housing providers on their rights and responsibilities under Fair Housing laws, and monitoring compliance with settlement agreements and orders enforcing Fair Housing laws. During the fiscal year, we completed thousands of intakes of individuals contacting us for assistance and investigated well over one hundred new complaints alleging discrimination.

Free legal services to assist tenants: we provide free legal services to tenants in lucas county who are experiencing substandard Housing conditions caused by absentee or unresponsive landlords. Many cases are resolved through mediation with the landlord. In addition, attorneys assisting the tenant may file cases in court to enforce the rights of the tenants. In the last fiscal year, this program assisted hundreds of tenants and recovered more than $80,000 back to tenants who were harmed by substandard Housing conditions.

Fair Housing education and outreach: we also perform outreach and education to help prevent Housing discrimination and create a more welcoming community. Many of the trainings we provide, help Housing professionals, such as real estate agents and property managers understand their responsibilities and how to ensure compliance with Fair Housing laws. We also provide trainings to residents so they understand their rights under the Fair Housing amendments act. Finally, many or our trainings are designed to change hearts and minds to building more welcoming neighborhoods. These include, for example, our ode to the zip code poetry contest.