Fair Housing Laws Apply to Commercial Real Estate Brokers

The fair housing laws that apply in New York City are set forth in the New York City Human Rights Law (the "Law"). Section 8-107(5) of the Law covers "commercial spaces." The Law defines "commercial space," in part, as "any space which is used or occupied, or is intended, arranged or designed to be used or occupied as a business or professional unit or office in any building, structure or portion thereof" (a "Commercial Space").Under the Law, real estate brokers, real estate salespersons, and their employees or agents (collectively, the "Covered Persons") are prohibited from engaging in certain unlawful discriminatory practices relating to a Commercial Space on the basis of a person's actual or perceived race, creed, color, national origin, gender, age, disability, sexual orientation, military status, marital status, partnership status, alienage or citizenship status, lawful source of income, or familial status, including but not limited to the foregoing (collectively, the "Protected Categories").Specifically, Covered Persons may not, on the basis of a person's membership in any of the Protected Categories:

1. refuse to sell, rent, or lease a Commercial Space to such person;

2. refuse to negotiate for the sale, rental, or lease of a Commercial Space to such person;

3. represent that a Commercial Space is not available for inspection, sale, rental, or lease when in fact it is so available; and/or

4. otherwise deny or withhold a Commercial Space from such person.

The Law also makes it an unlawful discriminatory practice for any Covered Persons to print or circulate any statement, advertisement, or publication, or to use any form of application for the purchase, rental, or lease of a Commercial Space which expresses, directly or indirectly, any limitation, specification, or discrimination as to members of one or more of the Protected Categories.