Is It Illegal To Deny Housing To A Felon?

Is it illegal to deny housing to a felon? In most cases, no, it’s not a crime to deny housing based on criminal records as long as the landlord doesn’t apply blanket bans.

While most other forms of discrimination are illegal and socially unacceptable, many landlords routinely turn down applicants because of a felony conviction in the renter’s past. 

There are some cases denying a felon house is illegal, though, so let’s get some more details.

When Is It Illegal To Deny Housing To A Felon 2025?

Illegal discrimination in housing is covered by the Fair Housing Act (FHA). Under the Fair Housing Act, members of specific groups have protected status. 

Landlords can not deny housing to tenants based on race, sex, color, disability, national origin, religion, or family status.

As you can see felons are not a protected group, but there are some important details you need to know about relating to race and disability protections which also have a wider impact.

Also Read: What Happens After You Get Approved For Section 8?

Disability Discrimination

It may be illegal to deny felons housing if they’re a recovering drug addict because substance abuse conditions are classed as a disability.

Who does this apply to? Felons who received a criminal conviction directly related to their substance abuse disorder may be protected under FHA disability discrimination rules. 

The disability must be documented, and the felon should have gone through a treatment program or be following a treatment plan.

Although landlords must make an individualized assessment, they can still reject applicants with a substance abuse disability if their offense record suggests they could be a danger to the landlord’s property or other tenants.

Race Discrimination

The federal government recognizes that widespread biases in the criminal justice system mean that certain minority groups are more likely to be convicted of crimes and given harsher sentences. 

Landlords with policies that exclude all felons may unknowingly carry out a form of discrimination known as disparate impact discrimination.

Because Blacks and Hispanics experience disproportionately higher rates of arrest and incarceration compared to other groups, barriers to housing caused by criminal background checks could be discriminatory to members of those groups.

What does this mean for renters?

• Landlords can’t have a tenant acceptance policy which includes a blanket ban on anyone with a criminal record. They can’t simply say, “We don’t rent to felons”.
• Landlords can’t reject applications just because the renter has answered “yes” to the criminal history question on the application form.

While landlords can still use criminal records in the tenant screening process, they need to set out which felonies pose an evidence-based risk to their business and apply that policy equally to all applicants. 

Exclusions based on criminal records must be necessary to serve a substantial, legitimate, nondiscriminatory interest of the landlord.

For example, a landlord could specify:

• No violent or drug-related felonies
• No sex offenders
• No felony convictions in the last 5 years
• No felonies against landlords or rental properties
• No convictions involving metal theft, or other property damage.
• No arson convictions

A landlord using those exclusions and applying them to every applicant would be acting fairly. 

Landlords should also make an individualized assessment of an applicant’s criminal background and review any mitigating information before denying a rental application.

If you’ve been denied housing, you’re entitled to know why your application was turned down. 

If a landlord tells you they don’t rent to felons or doesn’t carry out an individualized assessment of your criminal history, they violate the Fair Housing Act. If you’re Black or Hispanic, you could have a case for a disparate impact discrimination lawsuit.

When the landlord rejected your application they should have informed you of their decision in writing. Under the Fair Housing Act, the rejection notice must state the reason for the rejection and inform you of your right to obtain further information from the landlord or request a meeting to discuss the rejection within 14 days.

The Housing Center provides a free template letter you can download and send to landlords to appeal your denial. 

To get the letter go to https://www.thehousingcenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/Appealing-Criminal-Background-Denial-for-Housing-Form-Letter.pdf

How Does Fair Housing Legislation Help Other Felons? 

Even though you may not fall into a group protected by Fair Housing Act rules, the fact that landlords can’t use blanket bans helps all felons get a fairer chance when they apply for housing.

Because landlords need to be able to show that the disqualifying criteria in their tenant screening policy are necessary for safety or business reasons, your felony may not be disqualifying at all.

The Fair Housing Act also allows you to obtain more information about your rejection. If you’ve been turned down, use that right. Most felons just accept the rejection instead of finding out if they can challenge it.

Can You Deny A Tenant For Criminal History?

For landlords wondering “Is it legal to discriminate against felons for housing?” the answer is yes. Landlords can use criminal history to reject unsuitable tenants.

It’s your right to protect your business by excluding renters who could pose a risk to your safety, the safety of other tenants, or your property. However, you need to ensure your tenant screening policy is legal, and you must apply the same criteria to every applicant. 

Your screening policy must comply with the Fair Housing Act and with the guidance issued by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). HUD even suggests that landlords shouldn’t use criminal history when making housing decisions because criminal history isn’t a good predictor of a renter’s future behavior.

Landlords also need to be aware of state or city rules prohibiting or limiting the use of criminal history in tenant screenings.

It’s a good idea to have your screening policy prepared by a local attorney specializing in landlord/tenant law to protect yourself against costly discrimination lawsuits.

Summary

Landlords can legally discriminate against felons as long as their rental screening policy doesn’t include a blanket ban on applicants with criminal records, or create disparate impact discrimination.

The screening policy should clearly state disqualifying criteria and must be applied consistently to every applicant.

Felons with a substance abuse disability may be protected under the Fair Housing Act if the conviction was related to their substance abuse.

Felons from minority groups may also experience disparate impact discrimination from landlords who fail to carry out individualized assessments during the tenant screening process.