Wisconsin Family Lawyer

Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender persons are getting more housing opportunities through the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and its series of new proposals that will help prevent discrimination against people based on sexual orientation or gender identity. To date, it is the first federal agency to do so.

These LGBT-supportive proposals were introduced by HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan with the support of President Obama. Donovan has made proposals that include rules that:

- include LGBT couples under the term “family” when referring to “eligible beneficiaries of the public-housing and Housing Choice Voucher programs”.

- require that participants in HUD’s programs comply with nondiscrimination laws that focus on gender identity or sexual orientation.

-establish that any mortgage loan insured by the Federal Housing Administration is based on the credit of the person applying for the loan and not on any other discriminatory criteria, including sexual orientation and / or gender identity.

HUD is also doing a national study of anti-LGBT housing discrimination in housing rental or sales, the first of its kind to be conducted. Studies have indicated that LGBT persons have been the targets of discriminatory behavior and in many areas, they have no legal protections. This has resulted in differences in rent (favoring heterosexual couples), differences in application fees (favoring heterosexual couples), condo and co-op boards denying prospective home purchasers the right to buy and live in real estate governed by the boards and even sexual harassment.

Currently, Federal law does not include anti-discrimination laws concerning gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgendered persons. According to FindLaw.com,

“California, Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Wisconsin have laws prohibiting discrimination against gays or lesbians. California, Connecticut, Minnesota, New Mexico, Rhode Island and New York City also protect transgender folks. In addition, many cities have passed laws that make discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation illegal, including Atlanta, Chicago, Detroit, Miami, New York, Pittsburgh, St. Louis, and Seattle.”

The Fair Housing Act and local laws do not protect anyone residing outside those jurisdictions. While HUD’s reforms will not improve ant-discrimination legislation that does not specify LGBT persons, its commitment to give all qualified persons the opportunity to take control of their housing choices is a good step in that direction.

HUD has been a trailblazer in the LGBT rights movement, with the appointment of Roberta Achtenberg to Assistant Secretary.

Originally published here.

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