MADISON, Wis. -- A Dane County ordinance bans landlords from discriminating against potential tenants based on their low-income status.

In 2007, Dane County enacted an ordinance that prohibits landlords from turning Section 8 renters away.

But the Tenant Resource Center, a local renter advocacy group, said that not all landlords are aware of this ordinance.

"(Section 8 renters are) a protected class, just like being a woman, or your race, or your ethnicity and all of the other protected classes. So a landlord can not make a decision to rent to you because of the fact that you receive Section 8," said Brenda Konkel of the Tenant Resource Center.

One landlord in Marshall posted a duplex ad online that the Tenant Resource Center flagged as discrimination.

Workers at the center searching for available rental properties online came across a listing on Craigslist for a three-bedroom duplex in Marshall.

What caught their attention wasn’t the "no smokers, no pets" conditions. They said it was the "we don’t accept Section 8, sorry!" condition.

"It may just be a small landlord who just may not be aware, but I think the education piece is critically important," Konkel said.

The center said landlords can not turn Section 8 renters away who otherwise meet normal renting criteria.

Konkel added that it's also illegal to place an ad like the one on Craigslist. Konkel said it is discrimination that she fears will only get worse.

"With the recent changes with Section 8, a lot of people got out of their leases and are going to be trying to find new apartments as a result of their rents going up, which now hopefully has been fixed. But so there are more Section 8 renters out there looking and I think they're running into more discrimination than they had in the last few years," said Konkel. "I'm also concerned because I see the folks in Meadowood and Allied Drive and some landlords who are a little bit more political and a little more organized are starting to say, 'We're not going to rent to people on Section 8,' and they're linking that to crime."

The owner of the duplex in Marshall said she had no idea the ordinance was in place. The owner added that she even checked the Dane County Housing Authority Web site, which she said she found to be "confusing."

That's because the Web site states: "A family that is issued a voucher is responsible for finding a suitable housing unit of the family's choice. The owner must be willing to rent to the family under the program guidelines."

Konkel called that "concerning" and said it's giving wrong information to tenants and landlords.

Carolyn Parham, executive director of DCHA, said the information online is based on the federal guidelines, which do give landlords the choice of accepting or denying Section 8 renters.

The TRC said there is no provision in the county ordinance that states landlords can’t ask if someone is on Section 8. The TRC said landlords can still screen as they would with any other tenants.

But the ordinance says that landlords have to accept this kind of payment of rent if the tenant meets all the other requirements.

Ordinance violations range from $500 to $2,500.

Anyone who feels they've been discriminated against based on their Section 8 status can call the Tenant Resource Center at 608-257-0006.

Related Resources:

Dane County Fair Housing Ordinance (PDF Format).

blog comments powered by Disqus