Fair Housing

Fair Housing

The City of Racine is committed to affirmatively furthering fair housing and complying with state and federal fair housing laws.

The prohibitions specifically cover discrimination because of race, color, national origin, religion, sex, disability, lawful source of income, status as a victim of domestic abuse, sexual abuse, or stalking, sexual orientation, marital status, age, ancestry and the presence of children.

Fair Housing within the City of Racine Department of City Development provides fair housing (anti-discrimination) investigative and enforcement services.  Fair Housing also conducts educational seminars for housing consumers and members of the housing industry.  

Racine WI Fair Housing Brochure

American Bar Association - Fair Housing Act

Division of Energy, Housing and Community Resources

For Tenants:

If you believe you have experienced discrimination based on a U.S. or Wisconsin protected class,Wisconsin Fair Housing Law please contact the City of Racine Department of City Development for help.  You have rights to housing rights regardless of your family status Family Status Fact Sheet.

Signs of housing discrimination include: 

• The rent or deposit cited is higher than advertised
• The manager says that the unit has already been rented, but the sign or ad is still posted
• You are told, "You wouldn't like it here" or "There's no place for your children to play"
• The owner enforces an unreasonable occupancy limit, such as three people in a two-bedroom apartment
• The manager says that the rent will increase depending on the number of people residing in the unit
• Rules are enforced for some tenants and not others based on a group characteristic
• Repairs are only made for tenants of a certain ethnicity
• "Steering" (i.e. limiting your choices to a certain neighborhood or part of the complex because of your group characteristic)
• Refusing to rent a person with a disability who uses a service animal because the owner has a policy prohibiting tenants from keeping pets
• Refusing to make reasonable accommodations in rules, policies, practices, or services for people with disabilities
• Refuse to allow a tenant with a disability to make reasonable modifications (at the tenant's expense) to a dwelling or building

 It is legal for a landlord to refuse to rent to an applicant with: 

• A bad credit history
• A household income that does not meet reasonable income requirements
• A past history of not paying rent
• Criminal history

Other housing issues:

Building code and health violations: City of Racine Health Department (Environmental Health): For City of Racine properties.  For properties outside City boundaries, contact your local building inspector.

Housing choice vouchers and public housing:  Housing Authority of Racine County  

Eviction legal help:  Legal Action of Wisconsin Legal help for income-qualified clients

Wisconsin rental laws: Legal Action of Wisconsin Tenant Sourcebook

Racine County small claims court:  Court process for types of disputes such as: security deposits, roommate rent recovery, or other rental charges and Civil/Small Claims Court contact information 

Best Practices for Racine, Wisconsin Landlords

1. Your rental units are a small business.  Keep written records of all finances including rent collected, property taxes, utilities, security deposits, and maintenance costs.  If a tenant pays in cash make sure to keep a copy of the receipt. Record the dates of any financial transactions.  Keep copies of legal documents, too, like leases, correspondence with tenants (letters, emails, etc) and any police reports.
   
   
2. Racine has a number of older buildings that need preventative maintenance and upkeep.  Know who tenants should call/email for small maintenance matters and who they should contact in a maintenance emergency.  Make sure the tenants know your maintenance procedure, too, to protect your building.  Keep on top of yearly tasks like winterization, gutter cleaning, and changing the furnace filter.
   
   
3. Have clear rental criteria when looking for new tenants. If you have minimum income, credit score, or rental history criteria, make it clear in ads and on your application.
   
   
4. Most rental buildings in Racine were built before 1978 and require lead paint disclosure.  In buildings that were built before 1978 and haven’t had complete lead abatement, landlords need to provide tenants EPA lead pamphlets and disclose any known information concerning lead-based paint or lead-based paint hazards.  Read more about Lead-Based Paint here.
    
   

10 tenant tips

1. Get it in writing:   You can have a conversation with a landlord in person or on the phone but write down the information afterwards in a follow-up letter.  If you’re not talking in person, leave messages as a paper letter or email and keep your own copy.
   
   
2. Keep a log.  If you notice a pattern starting, keep a log with dates, times, names, etc.  This could be times you tried to contact the landlord about a repair, when you mowed the lawn or shoveled snow as part of a rent agreement, etc.
   
   
3. Pay by check, direct deposit, or insist on a rent receipt.  Never do a cash transaction without proof you paid a certain amount on a specific date.
   
   
4. Report maintenance issues right away.  Don’t wait for them to get bad- it will be better to let your landlord know about issues right away even if they aren’t able to fix minor issues immediately.
   
   
5. Have a lease and keep a copy.
   
   
6. Ask for what you want.  If you need a change, ask your landlord.  If you both want to change something that’s in the lease you’re allowed to amend the lease or sign a new one.
   
   
7. Sign a roommate agreement if you have roommates.  While your lease is with a landlord, you’re both on the hook for rent and damages.  If one person doesn’t have rent the full rent will still be due.   You may have to go to small claims court to collect money owed you by a roommate.  You can also mutually discuss and write down other house rules, utility payments, etc to help prevent conflicts before they start.
   
   
8. Take a few pictures of the apartment and fill in a check-in form when moving into a new place.  Make sure you keep a copy of this document.
   
   
9. Have renters insurance.  Your landlord’s building insurance doesn’t cover any of your belongings.  Insurance can be as cheap as a $15 a month.  Some landlords will even let you take part of this off your rent if you negotiate ahead of time.
   
   
10. Use headphones!  Want to listen to loud music or video games?  A pair of headphones will save a lot of grief between neighbors or roommates.

For Landlords 

All landlords, from those renting out a single house or duplex, to large multi-family apartment managers need to be aware of Wisconsin and U.S. Fair Housing Law.  Fair housing covers everything from advertising and showing a rental unit until after the lease has been completed.   Call Fair Housing in the Department of City Development if you have any questions related to fair housing or would like training for a group.

In the Sale and Rental of Housing: No one may take any of the following actions based on membership of a protected class:

• Refuse to rent or sell housing
• Refuse to negotiate for housing
• Make housing unavailable
• Deny a dwelling
• Set different terms, conditions or privileges for sale or rental of a dwelling
• Provide different housing services or facilities
• Falsely deny that housing is available for inspection, sale, or rental
• For profit, persuade owners to sell or rent (blockbusting) or
• Deny anyone access to or membership in a facility or service (such as a multiple listing service) related to the sale or rental of housing.

Fair housing best practices for landlords

• Provide the same services in setting up showings, giving information about a unit, and following-up with interested tenants.
• Advertise the features of the apartment (rooms, price, laundry) and not the people you imagine would be interested (“ideal for a young family” “great singles scene”). 
• Likewise, advertise neighborhood features (restaurants, transportation, etc) instead of the people in the neighborhood. 
• Give objective information on schools, crime, and religious institutions.  School district and police websites often have area statistics.
• Charge the same amount for the apartment regardless of the number of people living in the apartment.
• Keep good records of tenant maintenance requests, police calls, and communication with tenants through the rental period.
• Make sure you’re aware of additional laws regarding tenants with disabilities and reasonable modification or policy change requests. 
• Be upfront about rental qualifications for the unit such as a minimum credit score, rental history, or income.