New tenant protection law takes effect Jan. 1

SAN DIEGO – The Federal Fair Housing Act (FHA) protects every person in the United States from discrimination, regardless of immigration status. The FHA prohibits discrimination in the sale, rental, and financing of dwellings based on national origin and other protected classes.

National origin discrimination occurs when a person is treated differently in housing because of where they came from (ancestry, birthplace, culture, or language). Sometimes procedures to screen potential and existing tenants for citizenship and immigration status may violate the FHA’s prohibition on national origin di...