NJ Probes Claims Of Housing Discrimination In Newark

NEWARK, NJ — A pair of rental properties in Newark are among several in North Jersey that allegedly discriminated against people who wanted to use Section 8 vouchers, state prosecutors announced Wednesday.

According to the New Jersey Office of the Attorney General, its Division on Civil Rights (DCR) recently issued “findings of probable cause” in 10 cases involving claims of housing discrimination in North Jersey.

Prosecutors say that the accused landlords and real estate agents violated the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (LAD) by denying housing to people who said they wanted to pay with Section 8 vouchers, a form of government rental assistance.

Here’s the problem, state prosecutors said:

“Under [New Jersey law], potential renters cannot be denied the opportunity to rent because they receive government rental assistance. Landlords and their representatives, including real estate agents and brokers, also cannot discourage individuals who receive government rental assistance from renting. In each of the enforcement actions announced today, the DCR found probable cause to conclude that a property owner or real estate agency violated the LAD by denying individuals the opportunity to rent housing using government rental assistance.”

The findings of probable cause announced Wednesday involve six properties in Jersey City, two in Newark, and one property each in Garfield and Hillsdale. In each case, the DCR found probable cause to conclude that the property owner violated the LAD’s prohibition against source-of-income discrimination, authorities said.

State investigators found probable cause to conclude that five different real estate agencies – Boutique Realty, Realty Mark LLC, Rovazo Realty Group, Sokolich Real Estate Enterprises and Weichert Realtors – violated the LAD by telling prospective renters that the property would not accept renters who used vouchers to pay their rent, prosecutors said.

The exact addresses of the properties were not disclosed in Wednesday’s announcement.

Prosecutors pointed out that the findings of probable cause do not represent a final adjudication of the cases:

“Rather, it indicates that the DCR has concluded its preliminary investigation and determined sufficient evidence exists to support a reasonable suspicion that the LAD has been violated. The matter then goes to conciliation, giving the parties an opportunity to negotiate a voluntary resolution of the matter. If the parties are unable to reach a voluntary resolution, a deputy attorney general will be appointed to prosecute the matter either in Superior Court or in the New Jersey Office of Administrative Law.”

The cases were filed by Housing Rights Initiative, a nonprofit watchdog group that investigates claims of housing discrimination.

The group filed its complaints after its testers were told – either by the landlord or a real estate agent/broker – that the properties would not take housing vouchers. The claims were backed up with written and recorded evidence, prosecutors said.

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