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Three Things A Landlord Can't Do When It Comes To Minor Children (And How They May Break Housing Discrimination Laws)

17 January 2017 by Kenneth Pierce

When it comes to legal discrimination protection, it turns out that the youngest people actually have some of the strongest laws. Especially in a landlord/tenant situation, many people find themselves facing unfair treatment simply because they have kids. Here are three of the most common issues people have with minor kids in a housing complex that a landlord can't legally touch.

People can't be evicted for kids playing outside alone Both federal and state housing laws say that children can play outside in common areas alone, and there's no real age limit. Obviously, if a child is too young to care for themselves—2 or 3 years old—there may be an issue with local law enforcement. Most states have laws about "compelling danger" when it comes to children being unsupervised—meaning an imminent danger they may not be able to protect themselves from. But an apartment complex can't make a rule that says, for example, all children under 10 must be attended to. Simply not liking the fact that kids run and make noise is not a compelling danger.

People can't be evicted for kids staying outside too late A landlord simply can't dictate when people can come and go, and they can't dictate at what hours people can be outside (including minor kids). If a parent decides their 9-year-old can walk the complex at all hours of the night, the property owner can't stop them. Sure, it may be bothersome if kids are outside at night. But if they're not being loud and disruptive, they're fine. It's solely the responsibility of a parent to determine when their kid should be indoors.

People can't be evicted for kids being too loud (under "normal" conditions) Under most conditions, a landlord can't evict a tenant with minor kids over noise. It's okay for kids to run and laugh both inside and outside a home during the day. The key is though, there's a caveat of "normal conditions." A landlord can't insist that kids not make noise period, even if it interferes with daytime sleeping. A landlord can't insist that kids don't play outside. What a landlord can do something about is if the kids are making noise beyond normal hours (for example, playing drums or listening to loud music at 2 a.m.).

If a landlord attempts to evict a tenant because they have minor children, there may be grounds for legal action, even if the other people who live there complain. If you think you may be the victim of housing discrimination over minor children, your best course of action is going to be to contact an attorney that deals with this sort of issue all the time.  For more information, contact a law firm like The Law Offices of Douglas F. Fagan.

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