Can I Refuse to Show?

Question

I have a duplex in upstate NY, renting out the upper and living in the lower. We have minimum qualification standards in place and let everyone interested know about them. I know we cannot tell people not to apply for the apartment, regardless of if they meet this criteria. However if I'm pre-screening them on the phone and they don't meet the standards (by their own admission) but still want to see it, can I refuse to show them the apartment? Does refusing to show the apartment to them violate a fair housing law?

Account Closed · Answer

The Mrs. Murphy law does not apply in Ohio.  Ohio fair housing law is more restrictive than federal law.  I don’t know NY but you need to check your state’s fair housing law as well as federal law.  I don’t know if there any other states that are as restrictive in Ohio.  Also there can even be local laws as well.  There are some cities in Ohio that have added even more protected classes than federal and state law.  But if you are screening on basis of finances and credit scores you should be fine as long as you are consistent across the board.

Joe Splitrock · Answer

@Mike Chevalier as others mentioned, you are not bound by fair housing due to owner occupying the property. You just can't tell them why. For example, maybe you don't want kids living in the property. You can't advertise "no kids" but you can deny an applicant if they have kids. Let me be clear, I do not advocate discrimination but there is a valid reason for this exemption. For example a female renting out rooms in her home may not want to rent to men for privacy reasons.

As far as dealing with this situation. If they do not meet the screening criteria, explain to them you do not show the property to people who do not meet the criteria. The reason is they would not be accepted if they applied, therefore it is a waste of your time and their time. They need to find a home and it will not be yours. This may feel confrontational or uncomfortable for you to say, but if you need to do it. Do it on the phone, not in text or e-mail.

One of the hardest skills to master as a landlord is saying no, but it is the most important skill you will ever learn. They say, "can I see it anyways" and you say "no". Simple.

Jonathan Greene · Answer

As long as you have a valid reason and aren't using a reason as a means to discriminate, it should be fine. If you add the requirements to the listing or if it's just listed By Owner online you can say proof of these requirements before any showing. Just make sure the requirements apply equally to anyone looking - like credit score or no past judgments, etc.

Wesley W. · Answer

Google "Mrs. Murphy Law."  Owner Occupants have less restrictive guidelines when it comes to applicants.

Lien Vuong · Answer

Absolutely if you have a valid reason and it's not based on prejudice. That fact of the matter is - why are you and the tenants subjecting yourselves to Covid risks and time wasted if there is NO WAY you are going to accept them? What would be the ideal situation here? You carve out an hour of your day to show them and have them say thank you, you're right?

I would definitely take into consideration of your time and space here as should they.

Steve Morris · Answer

THat is a good question.  In any case, I think as long as you treat all applicants the same (i.e. state no tours unless you pass the screen) would be a minimum.

Karen F. · Answer

I refuse to show all the time.  I tell people over the phone that I don't charge an application fee, but that I do prescreen (evictions, criminal background, income, number of occupants, smoking, pets) over the phone before I will show it.  Sometimes people get annoyed, but when I explain that we don't charge an app fee, they usually calm down.  Very rarely (maybe every other year or so) I will get a call from a "tester" for fair housing.  You can always tell, because they are obviously much better spoken, much better educated than anyone who would want to live in my units, and they don't want to know a thing about the unit - they just want to know if I'll schedule a showing.  The second I realize what I'm dealing with, I bend over backward, "Of course I will show you the unit.  When would you like to see it?"  They always say that they'll call back, and of course they don't.

Account Closed · Answer

I could always tell who the testers were, too.  They never ask normal questions like where are the laundry facilities, what's the parking situation, they never look at how big the closets are.  I actually had one show up with a clip board one time lol.

But, no, you don't have to let people onto your property who don't have a right to be there.  If they have been denied through pre-screening, they don't have a right to be on your private property.  As long as your reason for denying them is legal.  No need to just let anyone onto your property and into your units.

AJ Shepard · Answer

There is an exemption in the Fair Housing Act, that if the owner lives in one of the units, the property is exempted from some of the FHA. This exemption is known as the "Mrs. Murphy" exception. Seems as though you because you live in the unit you would be able to screen more stringently than if you were not. As for showing them the unit, it seems as though it is best practice to treat all fairly. If you are not requiring other candidates to prove they qualify first before showing the unit doesn't seem as though you should require that of another person before showing it.

Can I Refuse to Show?

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