By Marlene Dolla

Housing Opportunities Made Equal of Virginia, Inc. (HOME) announced that it recently represented Tamesha Thompson in reaching a settlement with Meadowbrook Apartments in Chesterfield and reached a conciliation and resolves all claims between the involved parties.

HOME, a statewide fair housing and HUD-approved housing counseling 501(c)(3) non-profit, and Thompson submitted a complaint for source of funds discrimination to the Virginia Fair Housing Office against Meadowbrook Apartments  alleging that Meadowbrook Apartments discriminated against Thompson when she called the apartment complex inquiring about an apartment with her voucher.  The complaint alleges that an agent of the apartment complex told Thompson that a four-bedroom apartment was available and that she had to make 2.75x the total rent each, as opposed to 2.75x the portion she pays for her voucher, in order to qualify for the unit.

“When the Meadowbrook Apartments agent told Ms. Thompson how much she had to make per month, thousands of dollars she did not have as a low-income voucher holder, she was deterred from paying an application fee and applying for the apartment because she was given the impression she was ineligible.” noted HOME spokesperson Mike Burnette. “As a result of the discriminatory and improper calculation of the required income to have with her voucher, Ms. Thompson was unable to move herself and her family to the school district needed for her special needs child. Since Meadowbrook Apartment’s agents told Ms. Thompson that she did not make enough money to live there, Ms. Thompson and her 3 children were forced to remain in a three-bedroom home despite having a voucher for a four-bedroom home. Ms. Thompson had to continue to drive her son back and forth to school due to that being the closest school with the special needs program for her son.?

Virginia added a protection against discrimination based on source of income or funds to its Fair Housing Law in 2020.  The statute is intended to protect tenants and others seeking housing from being denied solely on the basis of the funds they are using to pay for that housing. It also  protects housing choice voucher holders, among others.  The Virginia Fair Housing Office and Real Estate Board jointly released a Guidance Document in 2021 that further explains how landlords should apply this protection. Under Federal Fair Housing Act protections, source of funds is protected due to the disparate impact it has on people of color, single mothers, and people with disabilities.

“We are pleased that we have reached a conciliation where we can ensure that Ms. Thompson is made whole and where Meadowbrook Apartments can serve more voucher holders in the future,”  said Moriah Wilkins, a HOME attorney.