Today, New York AG announced an agreement with a New Rochelle real estate research firm that resulted from an undercover investigation.
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NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y. — New York State Attorney General Letitia James says an agreement with a Westchester real estate brokerage will further increase housing equity in New York's sixth-largest city.
James today announced an agreement with real estate broker Pasquale Marciano and his companies, Century 21 Marciano, Anthony Marciano Real Estate, and New Rock Property Management, to provide housing to low-income renters. This will bring an end to illegal policies that deny people the opportunity to do so.
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The Office of the Attorney General (OAG), with the help of the Housing Rights Initiative (HRI), has determined that the real estate agent supervised by Mr. Marciano refused to rent an apartment to an investigator who had indicated an intention to rent it, and that found to have violated the Act and state law. According to the AG, you will use your Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher to pay your rent.
As part of the agreement, Marciano, who owns 13 multifamily rental properties in New Rochelle with a total of 76 units, will use Section 8 or other government housing subsidies to house nine tenants in his units. place and must pay $40,000 to the state. To make housing more accessible to low-income renters.
“Discrimination against low-income New Yorkers deprives those who need housing assistance the most,” James said. “This agreement opens up housing specifically for low-income New Yorkers and sends a clear message that this type of discrimination will not be tolerated in our communities. We would like to thank the Housing Rights Initiative for their cooperation in our work against discrimination. ”
SEE ALSO: AG says Westchester real estate company's 'discriminatory' practices have ceased
Refusing to rent to prospective tenants based on their income source is illegal discrimination under New York state law and unfairly denies New York residents equal access to housing, James said. Ta. Owners, landlords, property managers, letting agents, and brokers cannot refuse to accept prospective tenants simply because they receive a housing subsidy. Government-issued rental vouchers, such as the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program, provide housing assistance to the lowest income households for renting housing on the private market. These programs also assist seniors and people with disabilities on fixed incomes, displaced families, and the homeless with disabilities.
According to the attorney general's office, at the time of the investigation, Marciano was the owner and principal real estate broker for Century 21 Marciano, and was involved in the rental and leasing business for more than 25 real estate sales companies representing Westchester landlords seeking to rent apartments. was supervised. An investigation revealed that Century 21 Marciano has implemented a policy that prohibits Section 8 holders from submitting applications for rental units. Century 21 Marciano officials specifically told investigators that the unit under investigation did not accept Section 8 vouchers because they “didn't want to receive them.” This is a violation of state and local anti-discrimination laws.
Under the agreement, Marciano and his company's customer-facing staff must undergo anti-discrimination training. Marciano also needs to implement a non-discrimination policy and distribute it to everyone involved in the company's rental process. Rental applications must include a clear anti-discrimination statement that includes the line: “We are happy to consider applicants with housing vouchers and grants.”
Marciano should publicly advertise all available units and include that government housing vouchers, such as Section 8, are accepted in all rental properties. Mr. Marciano agreed to cap rental application fees at $20 and must also waive brokerage fees for applicants seeking to use government housing subsidies to rent during the five-year term. I also agreed.
“Our work with Attorney General Letitia James demonstrates New York State’s commitment to eliminating the harmful and illegal practice of housing voucher discrimination,” said Housing Rights Initiative Deputy Director Josh Murillo. . “These efforts will open up apartments to countless families and increase housing opportunities for everyday New Yorkers. We thank the Attorney General for proactively and systematically tackling this important issue head on. I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to Mr. and his office.”
In New York state, it is illegal for owners, managing agents, brokers or other representatives to refuse to rent, sell or lease a home based on income source, James said. She encouraged New Yorkers who believe they are victims of income discrimination to file complaints online.
