Are Those Under Age 18 a Protected Class?

In 1988, Congress added “familial status” – defined to include those family groups with children under 18 – to the list of protected groups under the Fair Housing Act (“FHA”). Since that time, condominiums and homeowner’s associations have been discovering that various rules regulating or prohibiting use of the association’s facilities by persons under 18 years of age may be prohibited by this federal law. Rules once considered common and reasonable, that is, rules which employ a specific age to regulate minor residents’ use of the pool, gym, or other areas, can result in legal action against the association on behalf of owners with children under 18. To accommodate FHA guidelines and remain enforceable, such restrictions within a community association must be re-crafted to specifically address an identifiable concern related to the specific use — which applies to everyone — and in most cases without reference to a specific age.