Earlier this month, the U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development (HUD) announced that it charged the owner and manager of a trailer park in Mississippi (with seven lots on 1.25 acres of land, each with water and utility hook ups) with violating the federal Fair Housing Act (FHA) by failing to rent a lot to an interracial married couple with two children (ages seven and five). HUD’s complaint asserts that after the property manager discovered that the husband is African American, the manager stated the entire family had to immediately relocate from the trailer park.

The case started with the filing of an administrative HUD complaint alleging that the trailer park discriminated against the family on the basis of race. The wife is Hispanic and, as noted above, the husband is African American. HUD claims that the wife was rented a lot as it was believed that the wife was Caucasian. However, literally a day after the family moved it, the defendants discovered the race of the husband and they demanded that the family move and take their trailer out of the park. HUD’s complaint further alleges that during a phone call the manager said “white and black shacking” was “problematic for his community, his church, and his mother in law.” The owner also allegedly said to the wife that “you did not tell me you were married to a black man.” Although the wife asked him to reconsider and informed him the couple was married and not “shacking”, HUD claims the owner refused and returned the first month’s rent. The family then moved out of the park. A reporter subsequently telephoned the owner and was told that neighbors did not approve of an interracial family. The HUD complaint followed.

While I always caution that these are just allegations at this point and there are two sides to every story, professional apartment management employees should be trained to avoid anyone being able to assert that a staff member would say anything like what is alleged in this complaint.  Or you will really need to speak with a lawyer like me.

Just A Thought.

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