Fair Housing / Lending News

Bloch v. Frischholz, 587 F.3d 771(7th Cir. 2009) Decided November 13, 2009 The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals unanimously held in Bloch v. Frischholz, that the Fair Housing Act (FHA) protects persons from discrimination not only before, but also after housing has been acquired. Though bright-line rules were not necessarily developed, the court discusses three provisions through which post-acquisition claims can now more clearly be established. Since 2004, after the Court's decision in Halprin v. Prairie Single Family Homes , the Fair Housing law in the 7th Circuit concerning post-acquisition conduct has been construed very narrowly because as the court stated,"the FHA by and large [is] concerned only [with] access to housing." Id. Halprin has lead many courts to focus on the timing of the discrimination rather than whether discrimination actually occurred. Bloch, to a certain extends, clarifies this area of the law by ruling that the FHA reaches a ...

United States District Court, N.D. California Hafiz v. Greenpoint Mortg. Funding, Inc. 652 F.Supp.2d 1039 July 16, 2009 Hafiz is significant to fair housing law because it re-articulates the manner in which a predatory-lending/reverse-redlining claim can be made under the FHA. It also shows how some courts are using the new more stringent pleading standards under Iqbal to dismiss federal claims. Plaintiff Majiman Hafiz's investment property was subject to foreclosure after falling behind in her monthly mortgage payments. In order to prevent the foreclosure sale of her property, Plaintiff alleged in her complaint that Defendant, Greenpoint Mortgage, failed to give her adequate time for review of the loan documents. Plaintiff also alleged that Defendant failed to disclose mortgage-related information as required by state and federal law. Plaintiff claimed that these alleged acts of excessive fee structures and failed disclosures on behalf of defendants resulted in the issuance ...

Provided is news story addressing the issue of fair housing law over the last 40 years. Link with video .

Chak Man Fung was the owner of an apartment that rented to three individuals one of them was Jennifer Ho. Ho acted as Ho’s agent when choosing renters. When Diana Lin decided to move out before her lease was up she found Meki Brachen to move in. Lin said she would not rent to blacks, additional Fung would also not allow Brachen to move in and barred any attempts. Ho and Meki Brachen filed racial discrimination charges against Fung and Lin. Several notifications by first class mail and Fed Ex were sent out and neither defendant answered. Finally after a fourth notification, Ho, but not Fung showed up for a hearing on remedies. Ho appeared without counsel and asked for a postponement because she realized that she needed counsel but her attorney was unavailable for the date. Additionally she explained that she had not wanted to read the legal notices and had just opened them days before the hearing. The ALJ denied the motion for a continuance, observing that Ho had only herself to...

A record 10,552 fair housing discrimination complaints were filed in fiscal year 2008, according to a report just released by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The report, which is produced for Congress each year, shows that a large portion of the complaints, 44 percent, were filed by persons with disabilities. Thirty-five percent, or 3,699, of the complaints alleged discrimination based on race. Click Here to read the full article

Justice Department Files Lawsuit Alleging Racial Discrimination at Mobile Home Park in Gulfport, Mississippi

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