2006 NS Contract - Contract Conducting Analysis of Impediments Fair Housing Choice Donald B Eager & Assoc

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O City of Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio 2 �, Anal sis of Im ediments to Fair Housin Choice 2.1 Why Fair Housing is Important to the Community Communities need to consider fair housing issues at least as importantly as economic and other issues. It is important to encourage residents to actively support and work toward an equal housing market. Housing discrimination tears at the very fabric of the community. It encourages an environment where disputes escalate, sends out a message of apathy, leads to segregated neighborhoods, perpetuates other housing problems and causes financial loss to the community through lost business opportunities. In assuring equal housing, a community makes its development and growth more successful. The perceptions that fair housing laws are meant for "Blacks and Hispanics" or other minorities are misguided. Fair housing regulations protect every citizen and non - citizens of the United States, no matter their race, color, national origin, sex, religion, familial status (presence of children) or disability. These categories are known as protected classes. Because a community has a small minority population, it does not mean that they do not have impediments to fair housing within their community. A good way to recognize impediments is to ask some simple questions: ✓ How does the rental market treat families with children, especially single parents? ✓ What access do individuals with physical or mental disabilities have to housing? ✓ Are regulations designed in a way that limit access to housing for protected classes? ✓ What image does the community convey to the outside world? Are the models used to market the community representative of all races? ✓ Do some areas within the community have a reputation that would discourage low - moderate income persons or protected classes from attempting to live there? ✓ With the pressure of a growing urban area, are minorities or low to moderate - income persons unable to consider significant areas in their housing search because there is no affordable housing? ✓ Are any potential home owners eliminating some affordable areas of the community because they would not be able to refinance or obtain adequate home owner's insurance? ✓ Are some affordable areas of the community eliminated because there is inadequate access by public transportation? It is important for the City of Cuyahoga Falls to consider fair housing law as a guaranteed protection for all people. Only then can the community help its residents share in an important part of the American Dream - living where they choose, without regard to factors that may negatively impact upon them because of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, familial status or disability. 2.2 The Analysis of Impediments to Fair Housing Choice (Al)