Fair Housing Listing Checker

How the checker works

It compares your text with more than 50 phrase patterns drawn from HUD’s 1995 advertising guidance and common fair housing training and MLS style rules, then highlights each match. Avoid items state a preference based on a protected class (“adults only”, “no wheelchairs”). Caution items depend on context but are widely treated as steering signals (“safe neighborhood”, “top-rated schools”). Style items are legal but often replaced (“master bedroom”). It doesn’t flag plain property descriptions such as “family room”, “walk-in closet” or a nearby church named as a landmark.

What the Fair Housing Act covers in advertising

The federal Fair Housing Act bars any ad or statement about selling or renting a dwelling that indicates a preference, limitation or discrimination based on seven protected classes: race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability and familial status (households with children under 18, including pregnant people). It reaches the agents and owners who place ads as well as publishers, and it applies even when the property itself is exempt from other parts of the Act.

States and cities often add protected classes, such as source of income (including housing vouchers), sexual orientation, gender identity, age and marital status. Your local law and MLS rules can be stricter than federal law.

Describe the property, not the buyer

One test covers most cases: does the phrase describe the home and its surroundings, or the people you expect to live there? HUD’s 1995 guidance (often called the Achtenberg memo) treats descriptions like “master bedroom”, “family room”, “walk-in closets”, “great view”, “jogging trails” and “quiet streets” as lawful, while ads that prefer adults, couples or singles, or describe a neighborhood in racial or religious terms, are not.

Using AI for listing copy

AI tools learned from decades of real estate marketing, so they reach for the same clichés: “perfect for families”, “safe neighborhood”, “ideal for empty nesters”. You’re responsible for what you publish, not the tool. Tell the model what to leave out, for example: “Describe only the property’s features and nearby places. Don’t describe who should live here, the neighbors, safety or school quality.” Then run the draft through this checker and read it yourself. Who sees the ad matters too, so don’t target social ads by protected characteristics.

A first pass, not a legal review

A word list can’t read context. It will miss wording it has no pattern for, and it will flag some phrases that are fine where you used them. Treat the results as a checklist, not a verdict, and take anything unclear to your managing broker or your brokerage’s fair housing officer.

FAQ

Is “master bedroom” a violation?

No. HUD’s 1995 guidance says it isn’t. Many MLSs and brokerages now prefer “primary bedroom”, which is why it’s marked Style. Follow your MLS’s rules.

Can I mention schools?

Naming the district or assigned schools is factual. Quality claims like “best schools” are subjective and commonly treated as a steering risk. Boundaries change, so ask buyers to verify.

Can I advertise a 55+ community?

Yes, if it qualifies as housing for older persons under the Housing for Older Persons Act (HOPA). Confirm with the HOA or management first; that’s why age wording is marked Caution.

Why flag “no Section 8” if federal law allows it?

Source of income isn’t a federal protected class, but many states and cities protect it, often including vouchers. Where that applies, an ad refusing voucher holders can break local law.