Fair Housing and Fayette County

Each year, the Fayette County Board of Commissioners adopts a Fair Housing Resolution which covers all the municipalities in the County, including the nine (9) “on behalf of” entitlement townships: Bullskin, Dunbar, Georges, German, Luzerne, Menallen, North Union, Redstone, and South Union Townships. In addition to the Resolution, the County designates the Fayette County Housing Consortium (FCHC) as the Fair Housing Officer for Fayette County, including its cities and entitlement townships.

The Fayette County Housing Consortium is a collaborative effort among public, private, and non-profit organizations including the Redevelopment Authorities of the County of Fayette and the Cities of Connellsville and Uniontown, to address housing planning issues in Fayette County, Pennsylvania and promote and facilitate improved and fair housing opportunities for County residents. Membership is open to any organization which is interested in housing issues and includes representatives from county and local governments, redevelopment and housing authorities, non-profit organizations, professional affiliate organizations, realtors, mortgage lenders, and housing developers.

Any Fayette County resident who believes they have been discriminated against under any of the conditions of the Fair Housing Act may file a complaint with the County’s Fair Housing Officer at:

86 West Main Street

Uniontown PA 15401

Phone: 724-437-1547

TTD: 1-800-427-4636

>>COMPLAINT FORM

What is Fair Housing?

The Fair Housing Act was signed into law by President Lyndon Johnson as the Title VIII of the Civil Rights Act on April 11, 1968. The purpose was to help bring an end to housing discrimination by eliminating housing segregation. The act guarantees equal housing opportunities for all by making it illegal to discriminate based on race, color, national origin, gender, religion, family status or disability for those renting or buying a home, getting a mortgage, seeking housing assistance, or engaging in other housing-related activities.

>>READ MORE about the history of the Fair Housing Act on HUD’s website.

>>LEARN MORE about Fair Housing and related laws.

What is Housing Discrimination?

The following actions are prohibited by Title VIII of the Civil Rights Act of 1968  (Federal Fair Housing Act) if based on race, color, sex, national origin, religion, familial status (families with children), or handicap (disability) - and the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act adds the additional protected classes of age, ancestry and use of guide or support animals because of the blindness, deafness or physical handicap of the user or because of the user is a handler or trainer of support or guide animals – and are considered discriminatory:

• Refusing to sell or rent to, deal or negotiate with any person.
• Discriminating on terms or conditions for buying or renting housing.
• Discriminating by advertising that housing is available only to persons of a certain race, color, religion, sex, national origin, familial status, handicap (disability), age, ancestry or with no animals.
• Denying that housing is available for inspection, sale or rent when it really is available.
• Blockbusting-for-profit, persuading owners to sell or rent housing by telling them that minority groups are moving into the neighborhood.
• Denying or making different terms or conditions for home loans by financial institutions.
• Denying to anyone the use or participation in any real estate services, multiple listing services or other facilities related to selling and renting of housing.
  

>>VIEW EXAMPLES of housing discrimination on HUD’s website.

Why is Fair Housing Important?

The Fair Housing Act has helped strengthen families, communities, businesses and our overall economy by creating diverse neighborhoods where families can enjoy equal opportunities in regards to schools, jobs, recreations. Although the Fair Housing Act was intended to eliminate housing discrimination, the National Fair Housing Alliance still reports instances of housing discrimination today. In fact, there were 31,202 reports in 2018. Surprisingly, they have also reported increases in both reports and housing-related hate crimes in recent years.

How to prevent Housing Discrimination:

If you feel you have been a victim of housing discrimination, you can reach out to your local Fair Housing Officer, the Fair Housing Law Center, or HUD to file a complaint. Each agency has established online tools to help determine if you may be a victim of housing discrimination.    

>>GO TO the Fair Housing Law Center’s Victim Assessment Tool.

>>VIEW & PRINT HUD’s Housing Discrimination Victim brochure.

>>FILE COMPLAINT with HUD’s Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity (FHEO).

Fair Housing Partners and Links

HUDS Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity (FHEO)

National Fair Housing Alliance (NFHA)

Fair Housing Law Center

Fair Housing Partnership (FHP)

Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission

Fayette County Housing Consortium

Redevelopment Authority of the

City of Connellsville