REAL ESTATE
by Jim Coleman, REALTOR®
FAIR HOUSING IS BASIS FOR HOUSING FOR ALL
Fairness and opportunity for all is a major call in the land today. Among the political candidates one can hear all sorts of petitions and promises to achieve the best of everything for everyone.
This month, the National Association of REALTORS® is celebrating Fair Housing as it joins the country in the 40th Anniversary of the historic 1968 Fair Housing Act. "On April 11, 1968, President Lyndon Johnson urged congress to approve the Fair Housing Act just one week following the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. as a tribute to Dr. King's legacy and commitment to civil rights. One of the Act's central objectives was to prevent discrimination based on race in the sales or rental of housing. This significant Act has since empowered people from all races and ethnicities to pursue the dream of equal access to housing."
A lot has been done through the years with the maturation of Fair Housing and the governing principles contained in the original Act and subsequent amendments and modifications. Protected classes have been provided establishing a basis to purse housing with openness and fairness with protection under the law.
There are restrictions and guidelines governing behavior and conduct of property owners, landlords, practitioners among the various professions associated with housing, and all engaged in the experience of renting, buying and selling of real property. The rights of individuals are paramount in this arena. All persons have protection under the law.
Members of the NAR make the following Pledge:
I agree to:
· Provide equal professional service without regard to the race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin of any prospective client, customer, or of the residents of any community.
· Keep informed about fair housing law and practices, improving my clients' and customers' opportunities and my business.
· Develop advertising that indicates that everyone is welcome and no one is excluded; expanding my client's and customer’s opportunities to see, buy, or lease property.
· Inform my clients and customers about their rights and responsibilities under the fair housing laws by providing brochures and other information.
· Document my efforts to provide professional service, which will assist me in becoming a more responsive and successful REALTOR®.
· Refuse to tolerate non-compliance.
· Learn about those who are different from me, and celebrate those differences.
· Take a positive approach to fair housing practices and aspire to follow the spirit as well as the letter of the law.
· Develop and implement fair housing practices for my firm to carry out the spirit of this declaration.
These lofty and worth while principles should be accepted and applied by all Americans, not just those with membership in the National Association of REALTORS®. The law is for all.
St. George REALTOR® Jim Coleman is Associate Broker and Partner/Owner of ERA Brokers Consolidated. He Specializes in Residential, Investment and Commercial Real Estate, holding National Designations of Accredited Buyers Representative (ABR), Certified Residential Specialist (CRS), Resort and Second Home Property Specialist (RSPS) and Seniors Real Estate Specialist (SRES). You can contact him by e-mail at Jim@RealtorJimC.com. Call: (435) 674-0600; or write: Jim Coleman, 201 East St. George Boulevard, St. George, Utah 84770. This and other columns are available at www.RealtorJimC.com/articles.