April 21, 2011

In April of 1968, President Lyndon Johnson signed the Fair Housing Act into law - today, we celebrate April as Fair Housing Month.

As part of receiving funding from the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the Portland Housing Bureau (PHB) has compiled - on behalf of the City and Multnomah County - an analysis of barriers to fair housing choices in our community.

To help us better understand what barriers exist, we asked the Fair Housing Council of Oregon (FHCO) to test common situations for renters and tell us where there's discrimination.

We work with partners to help counter discrimination through landlord education, outreach to renters, help in understanding contracts, and more. But as the FHCO findings reveal, 43 years after the Fair Housing Act became law, there's still a lot of work to do.

Equity is at the forefront of PHB's mission, and Nick is committed to ensuring that everyone has access to a safe, decent, and affordable place to live.

As part of our focus on equity, PHB has created the Fair Housing Advisory Committee, bringing together a diverse group of property managers, renter advocacy groups, and government agencies to examine where discrimination occurs in our community and offer creative recommendations for addressing it.

While discrimination may not be intentional, it has the same impact: people of color and immigrants face bias in the rental market. We're serious about ending discrimination toward people renting apartments, and we look forward to working with the Fair Housing Advisory Committee to find solutions.

History of the Fair Housing Act

Draft Executive Summary of the "2011 Analysis of Impediments to Fair Housing in Multnomah County"

Fair Housing Council of Oregon

Thanks to flickr user Emery Co Photo for the photo