HUD Commemorates National Fair Housing Month

WASHINGTON – Today, Adrianne Todman, Acting Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), released the following statement in commemoration of Fair Housing Month and the signing of the Fair Housing Act of 1968, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, sex (including sexual orientation and gender identity), disability, and familial status.

“For more than half a century, the federal government has sought to end discrimination in housing through enforcement of the Fair Housing Act. Under the Biden-Harris Administration, the Department of Housing and Urban Development takes its responsibilities under that law and other civil rights laws very seriously and works diligently to ensure people have full access to housing that meets their needs,” said HUD Acting Secretary Adrianne Todman. “Everyone in this country deserves to live free from discrimination, bias, and danger. This Fair Housing Month, we are recommitting ourselves to the important work of protecting individuals and families across America from harm.”

This year’s Fair Housing Month theme, Fair Housing: The ‘Act’ in Action, underscores the Biden-Harris Administration’s commitment to combating discrimination in housing, protecting fair housing rights for all who call America home, and redressing our nation’s past discriminatory policies and practices.

“This April, we reflect on the hard-fought battle for fair housing and recommit efforts to eliminate discrimination and disparities in housing across our country” said Demetria L. McCain, Principal Deputy Secretary for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity. “This month and every month, HUD is taking meaningful action to advance housing justice and protect the rights of all people to live free from discrimination in the homes of their choice, regardless of their race, color, religion, national origin, sex (including sexual orientation or gender identity), disability, or familial status.”

Each April, HUD recognizes Fair Housing Month alongside communities, fair housing advocates, and fair housing organizations to underscore the significance of the Fair Housing Act, raise public awareness of fair housing rights and responsibilities, highlight fair housing enforcement efforts, and emphasize the importance of creating diverse and inclusive communities.

HUD will commemorate Fair Housing Month with an Opening Ceremony on April 11, 2024, at 2:00 P.M. (EDT), that will showcase HUD’s efforts to advance and protect fair housing rights to ensure that all people have the right to obtain the housing of their choice, free from discrimination. Register to attend the Fair Housing Month Opening Ceremony here. There is no cost to register. For a complete listing of HUD Fair Housing Month events and activities, visit: https://www.hud.gov/FHM. Follow the Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity on Facebook for additional news and updates.

Mortgage Giant loanDepot.com Commits to Industry-Leading Best Practices for “Reconsideration of Value” in Settlement of Appraisal Discrimination

A landmark settlement has been reached with loanDepot.com, LLC, one of the ten largest residential mortgage lenders in the country, resolving a federal appraisal discrimination lawsuit brought against the lender.

Relman Colfax filed the case on behalf of homeowners Drs. Nathan Connolly and Shani Mott, a Black couple living in the mostly white historic neighborhood of Homeland in Baltimore, Maryland. The couple applied to loanDepot to refinance their mortgage and loanDepot had the home appraised by Shane Lanham of 20/20 Valuations, LLC. Drs. Connolly and Mott alleged that the appraisal was discriminatory on the basis of race, and that loanDepot discriminated and retaliated against them by failing to overturn the appraisal and/or have a new one conducted. The discrimination claims against Defendants Lanham and 20/20 Valuations remain pending.

Recognizing that fair and accurate appraisals are critically important to protecting the fair housing and fair lending rights of people of color, loanDepot commits in the settlement to maintain or implement a comprehensive set of industry-leading policies and practices for the “reconsideration of value” (ROV) process in mortgage lending. loanDepot will make clear to applicants that they can ask loanDepot to reconsider an appraisal if they believe it is flawed. loanDepot will explain how to make an ROV request, maintain a clear and thorough internal process for timely addressing them, escalate any that allege discrimination, and explain any denials in writing. Second appraisals will be ordered if loanDepot identifies any indicia of discrimination. Applicants will not be charged to utilize the ROV process.

loanDepot will require its employees to attend training on appraisal discrimination and appraisers to certify that they have not been found to have discriminated. The company will not utilize appraisers who cannot meet this certification requirement or if bias is identified. It will also conduct statistical analyses of appraisals and ROVs to identify any possible discrimination, maintain records, and report its findings. The settlement also provides for a payment to Drs. Connolly and Mott. The Settlement Agreement, which sets forth the required ROV best practices in greater detail, is available here.

Dr. Connolly stated that he is “pleased that loanDepot has agreed to these important best practices for ROVs and hopes that other lenders will follow loanDepot’s lead and commit to comparable policies and procedures.” While loanDepot denies the allegations in the litigation, it engaged constructively throughout the settlement process, demonstrating a commitment to combat bias in lending. 

The Relman Colfax litigation team includes John Relman, Reed Colfax, Jennifer Klar, Glenn Schlactus, Soohyun Choi, Gabriel Diaz, and David DePriest, with paralegal assistance from Don Scales, Max Niles, and Jazmin Trenco.

Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals Blocks Florida law that Discriminates based on National Origin

The Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals has temporarily halted the enforcement of an unconstitutional Florida law, known as SB 264, against two Chinese immigrants who have challenged the statute in court. SB 264 bans many Chinese immigrants, including people here as professors, students, employees, and scientists, from buying a home in large swaths of the state. This decision comes after a Florida district court ruled against the plaintiffs’ motion to preliminarily block the law while the case proceeded.

Judge Nancy Abudu acknowledged that “SB 264 was enacted for the specific purpose of targeting people of Chinese descent.” Judge Abudu concluded that the plaintiffs have shown a substantial likelihood that statute also violated the Equal Protection Clause of the United States Constitution. In doing so, Judge Abudu excoriated the District Court’s fraught reliance on the widely discredited century-old Terrace v. Thompson, 263 U.S. 197 (1923), case, determining that it “may have had support in 1923, but it is now 2024” and such laws are now subject to strict scrutiny. 

Florida’s ban violates the U.S. Constitution by specifically targeting Chinese citizens, said Bethany Li, legal director of the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund, one of the groups representing the plaintiffs.

Leading Civil Rights and Consumer Advocates Urge the Biden-Harris Administration to Complete Its Important Work of Reforming the Home Valuation Process to End Appraisal Bias