Same-sex couples have a harder time getting information about available rental properties than heterosexual couples, according to a new study by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
In its first large-scale study of housing discrimination against same-sex couples, HUD found the group gets notably fewer responses when seeking information about vacancies advertised online.
Gay men have a more difficult time getting rental information than lesbian couples and the study found the problem exists even in states that have protections against such discrimination. Georgia has no such protections in place.
HUD said its objective was to develop the first national estimate of housing discrimination based on sexual orientation. The agency sent 6,833 emailed responses to online ads offering one-bedroom rentals from June through October 2011. For each ad, HUD indicated the sexual orientation of the sender.
In nearly 80 percent of the cases, heterosexual and same-sex couples received equal treatment in getting responses about the vacancies, HUD said. Gay male couples, however, did not receive responses in nearly 16 percent of the instances and lesbian couples in about 15 percent of the cases.
Jeff Graham, executive director Georgia Equality, said the findings are not surprising.
“It’s something that we have felt has been an issue,” Graham said. “We know now for sure that this is a problem.”
“Many couples may not even realize they are being discriminated against,” Graham added. “It’s a subtle form of discrimination that takes place.”
In its summary, HUD said the discrimination found in its study “likely underestimates the extent to which heterosexual couples are favored over same-sex couples in the rental housing market.”
HUD also said the discrimination is comparable, although not as extensive, to bias targeting black and Hispanic house hunters.
“This study serves as evidence that there is a dire need to include protections for the LGBT community in the federal Fair Housing Act,” said Shanna Smith, president of the National Fair Housing Alliance, a consortium of more than 220 non-profit fair housing organizations and civil rights groups. “While the discrimination statistics are no surprise, the study itself was a crucial first step that needed to be taken to better understand the extent of housing discrimination against people based simply on their sexual orientation.”
The problem also existed in the 20 states that have protections against discrimination in housing based on sexual orientation. Those states had slightly more discrimination than states without protections, HUD found. No legislation has been introduced in the Georgia General Assembly targeting such discrimination.
The Fair Housing Act does not include sexual orientation or gender identity as protected classes and the fair housing laws of most states do not provide legal protections for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community.
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