questions & answers

Question: My husband applied for a joint apartment and put on the application that there was a criminal record involved. He was approved given a move in date. After my information was reviewed, the application was denied because of a criminal record. Is that legal?

Answer: A landlord can choose not to rent an apartment to a person that has a criminal record. There are no laws that prohibit a landlord’s ability to decide who will be allowed to live in or on their property. Landlords are not allowed to discriminate based upon a persons, race, gender, religion, age, sexual orientation, etc. However, this form of discrimination does not apply to persons with a criminal record (Fair Housing Act). In the event that a situation appears to be a case of discrimination but there is a lack of sufficient evidence to show that it was discrimination, then a complaint can be filed for review with the Attorney General’s office (A.R.S. 41-1491). A complaint can be filed for review by visiting the Attorney General’s website and filing out a questionnaire (https://www.azag.gov/complaints/civil-rights).