questions & answers

Question: Asked to surrender and have my photo ID withheld from me during a routine inspection of a unit for possible rental. First told was for safety reasons then told "was AZ law". Since it is not the law (?)- was this an attempt to swipe all information from DL without my permission while I was looking at the rental unit or was this an deliberate act of discrimination?

Answer:

A landlord may set in place policies such as requiring identification to inspect a potential unit, only if this policy is enforced for other interested parties. You cannot be made to follow different rules than other tenants for any reason. Also, in strenuous circumstances such as being short staffed, the landlord or office may ask for identification for concern of safety. Furthermore if the units are age restricted the landlord may request to see identification. Do understand that a landlord cannot refuse to rent to you because of your race, color, nationality, gender, family status, religion, or disability. If you think a landlord is discriminating against you for one of these reasons, contact your local City Attorney’s Office, the Civil Rights Division of the Arizona Attorney General’s Office, or the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (these numbers can be found in the blue pages of the telephone book or online at: www.azag.gov/civil_rights and www.hud.gov).