Fair Housing Laws in Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C.—along with the rest of the United States—complies with the federal Fair Housing Act, which shields certain groups from housing discrimination. But D.C. law also broadens these protections significantly, protecting people based on their source of income, sexual orientation, and more.

D.C. laws protect more renters from discrimination

Federal laws ban discrimination based on seven protected classes: race or color, religion, national origin, familial status, disability, and sex. The District of Columbia Human Rights Act of 1977 adds 11 more:¹

• Age (18 or older)
• Family responsibilities (supporting a person in a dependent relationship, which includes—but is not limited to—children, grandchildren, and parents)
• Gender identity or expression
• Matriculation (student status)
• Marital status (married, single, in a domestic partnership, divorced, separated, and widowed)
• Personal appearance
• Place of residence or business
• Political affiliation
• Sexual orientation
• Source of income
• Victim of an intra-family offense (a person who was subjected to domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking)

This list makes fair housing laws in Washington, D.C. some of the strongest in the country.

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[1] Code of the District of Columbia § 2–1402.21(a)