2003 Committee Report - Equal Opportunity

April Is Fair Housing Month

April 2003 is the 35th anniversary of the passage of the Fair Housing Act, the groundbreaking legislation that affirms in this country the right of every citizen to obtain the housing of their choice without being limited by race, color, religion, national origin, sex, disability or familial status. This year the fair housing month theme is "Welcome Home."

The Fair Housing Act covers most housing in the United States and most housing transactions, including the rental and sale of housing and the provision of mortgage loans.

Now is the time for housing providers, mortgage lenders, citizen advocates, and those engaged in community development to fight hate, build hope, and protect freedom. It is time to celebrate diversity and ensure equal opportunity.

12 Steps Toward Equal Housing Opportunity

1. Commit the letter of the law to memory. The Fair Housing Act makes illegal any discrimination in the sale, lease, or rental of housing or making housing unavailable because of race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin. 
2. Market to diversity. NAR certifies real estate practitioners who've been trained to work with a diverse population. The At Home With Diversity: One America certification program is a full-day class that helps you build cross-cultural skills and develop a diversity business plan. Once you complete the course, you can display in your advertising the HUD One America logo and the NAR At Home With Diversity logo.
3. Give sellers and landlords whose properties you manage the brochure What Everyone Should Know About Equal Opportunity in Housing and discuss it with them.
4. Point out and discuss with prospective clients and customers any language in your listing or lease agreement that pertains to fair housing.
5. Get sellers' consent in writing to abide by the law.
6. Be ready to walk away from a listing or property management contract if the owners seem unwilling or unable to adhere to the Fair Housing Act. For example, if sellers refuse to show their property to certain buyers, terminate the listing agreement.
7. Treat prospective buyers and tenants in a consistent manner. You can do so by establishing an equal professional service model. That is, use objective information, let the customer set the limits, and offer a variety of choices. Develop a consistent approach to greeting people, showing homes, qualifying prospects, obtaining listings, conducting open houses, keeping records, and following up  with prospects. Ask standard questions, and consider using forms or checklists  to keep track of what you need to cover with each prospect.
8. Don't encourage prospects to buy or lease a property - or discourage them from buying or leasing one-because of the racial, ethnic, or religious composition of a neighborhood. When you make such choices for prospects, you can be accused of steering. Instead, offer a variety of choices.
9. Beware of exclusivity. Be careful not to develop a promotion plan that excludes a certain group. Any marketing plan, including the selection of media for ads, that indicates a preference, limitation, or discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin is a violation of the Fair Housing Act.
10. Be vocal about your support for fair housing. Send a positive message to your community. Conduct fair housing training programs, monitor salespeople's and leasing agents' performance, and commit to the REALTOR® Fair Housing Declaration. Doing so gives you a marketing edge and makes you more credible if you're faced with a fair housing violation.
11. Implement procedures, such as self-testing, to measure your company's compliance with the fair housing law. Such procedures can help you discover areas for improvement. Private fair housing organizations or your local REALTOR® association can conduct the testing. 
12. Monitor yourself. Regularly ask yourself whether you provide the same level of service to everyone who walks through your door.

Real Estate: A Profession for People of All Cultures

Regina Render,
Chair

The Equal Opportunity Committee provides a variety of programming that will focus this year on recruiting and retaining multi-cultural real estate agents.

For new REALTOR® members, licensed two years or less, we offer our Real Estate Mentoring Sessions, held the third Thursday of each month (except in December), 9:00 to 10:30 a.m. at CBR. These sessions give participants an opportunity to chat with seasoned brokers and sales agents about various topics, including networking, prospecting, balancing work and family, the latest technology, as well as, numerous other topics.

Our Mentors, thus far, are Shari Carroll, Tracy Chambers, Juanita Daniel, Darryl Isabel, Sue Lusk-Gleich, Bob McCarthy, Sandy Schupp and Beverly Woodford.

The committee also has programs for those considering a career in real estate. Our Multi-Cultural Real Estate Career Night and Job Fair is held throughout the year at local colleges. Education and licensing requirements, CBR and real estate myths are explored during the panel discussion portion of the program.

After the panel discussion, the job fair portion of the program begins and participants have an opportunity to talk one-on-one with various real estate company representatives. We plan to expand career night program locations to include neighborhood churches and community organizations.

At career night, we also plug our Multi-Cultural Real Estate Grant Program, which provides post-licensing dollars up to $500 to help recipients with start-up cost.

This year, we have awarded grants to Kelly Bales, Century 21 Joe Walker & Associates; Kendra Coggins, Coldwell Banker King Thompson; Luz E. Jaramillo, RE/MAX New Directions; and Tregenia Walters, H.C. Bland Realty. Grant dollars are held on account at the board and may be used for membership dues, continuing education courses and other real estate related purposes.

As we reflect on April Fair Housing Month, we can be proud that real estate is an exciting and challenging profession where people of all cultures are welcome and where many opportunities are in place to help everyone succeed.

Anyone interested in learning more about the programs offered by the Equal Opportunity Committee, please give me call, 684-2630.