April is Fair Housing Month, commemorating the US Department of Housing and Urban Development’s commitment to eliminating housing discrimination and creating equal opportunity for every community.
Although many may find discrimination to be a thing of the past, discrimination still lives on in the 21st century, and for property managers and real estate lessors, the risk of a discrimination claim is more evident than commonly acknowledged.
Brian Alva, vice president at
NAS Insurance, states that the company has seen an uptick in discrimination claims targeted at property managers coming through its professional liability division. “Whether it is for a protected status or familial status, we are seeing particular activity in the space of discrimination against tenants,” he says.
As home prices get more expensive in markets across the nation, more and more individuals and families are choosing to rent their housing, widening a property manager’s exposure to discrimination allegations. However, interestingly, one of the larger trends that Alva and his team at NAS is seeing is the discrimination against a tenant based on family status.
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“As far as types of allegations go, this has definitely been one of the larger trends,” says Alva. “We’ve been writing this coverage for a number of years, and this type of discrimination wasn’t on our radar four years ago. Back then, we were handling more of your standard allegation of discrimination based on race or religion or the like. But family discrimination has become one of the more frequent ones we are seeing right now.”
Because claims such as the one Alva explains receive minimal attention, it is important for agents and brokers to educate their property manager clients about the importance of discrimination coverage. Alva also points out the fact that although a client may not be at fault in a claim, defending a discrimination claim can be a lengthy and costly process – strengthening the need for proper insurance coverage.
“Even if [the property manager] did nothing wrong, there is still exposure anytime they have a bad interaction with a resident or potential resident,” he continues. “The Department of Housing and Urban Development has made it easy for tenants to report discrimination claims against property managers or owners, and that is one piece that is often overlooked when buying coverage. As an agent, making sure you sell your client a policy with that type of coverage is important.”
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