Fair Housing Rules and Racist Deed Restrictions

September 30, 2009 | By Kelley Koehler | Filed Under Tucson Homes Explained

I was asked a question the other day:

Are real estate restrictions on race legal?

That’s a big NO.

Fair Housing Laws in Tucson

Fair Housing Laws are intended to prohibit discrimination against those looking for housing, and list several protected classes. In Tucson, that means you can’t discriminate based on someone’s race, color, religion, national origin, sex, familial status, or sexual orientation. There are exceptions to the rule, but that’s a whole different post.

Legacy – and Racist – Deed Restrictions in Tucson Neighborhoods

Fair Housing laws started in the 1960s. And unfortunately, when some subdivisions here in Tucson were created prior to that, the creator sometimes included restrictions against people of specific races owning or occupying property in those neighborhoods. They often say something like:

No part of said property shall be used or occupied in whole or in part by any person of African or Asiatic descent, or by any person not of the White or Caucasian race, except such persons as may be employed thereon as domestic servants by the owners or tenants.

Which is rather ugly. The person who asked me that question has a Chinese-American husband. So when they read through the deed restrictions for a house they liked in a nice Central neighborhood, they were horrified.

Couple things – restrictions like that can’t be enforced, given the Fair Housing laws. Most people don’t even read their deed restrictions, quite honestly. And I wouldn’t assume that current residents of that neighborhood are in support of that restriction – or are even aware of it.

If you do find something like that in your deed restrictions, you can always try to get them changed. Usually, restrictions apply to an entire community, so you’ll have to go to all of them and get agreement to change them. If your neighborhood has an active HOA, that might be the best place to start.

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