Fair housing on the New York real estate exam

On both exams, larger on the broker's

Fair housing appears on the salesperson exam and is the largest single section of our broker forms, because a broker answers for the conduct of every agent in the office.

Two layers of law

The federal Fair Housing Act protects against discrimination based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex, familial status and disability. New York law protects more groups than the federal act, and New York City adds more still. When a question is about New York, do not stop at the federal list.

The conduct the exam names

• Steering. Guiding buyers or renters toward or away from areas because of a protected characteristic.
• Blockbusting. Pressing owners to sell by suggesting that people of a protected group are moving into the area.
• Redlining. Refusing loans or insurance in an area because of who lives there.
• Discriminatory advertising. Wording that states or implies a preference, including phrases that describe the kind of person wanted rather than the property.

Disability

Questions often involve reasonable accommodations, such as a change to a no-pets rule for an assistance animal, and reasonable modifications to a unit. Learn who pays for each and when a request can be refused.

The answer the exam looks for

When a client asks an agent to discriminate, the answer is to refuse and explain the law, and to decline the business if the client insists. Options that go along with the request, or that pass it on quietly, are written to be wrong. A licensee is responsible even when only following instructions.

For brokers

Expect questions about office policy, training and supervision: what a broker must do to prevent violations, and what happens when an agent commits one.