Politics
Trump administration rolls back Obama-era Fair Housing Act liability mandate
The policy shift sets strict time limits on accessibility complaints in an effort to lower housing costs.
The short version
- The Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Department of Justice have jointly rescinded a 2013 policy that allowed indefinite liability for original design and construction flaws under the Fair Housing Act.
- The new rules establish a strict one-year deadline for administrative complaints and a two-year statute of limitations for federal civil lawsuits, both beginning when a building receives its certificate of occupancy.
- Property owners are now shielded from retroactive, building-wide liability for original architectural deviations once these windows close, though individual tenants can still request reasonable modifications at any time.
Key facts
- The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) jointly rescinded an Obama-era policy regarding Fair Housing Act design and construction liability.[Fox News]
- The previous policy permitted third parties to file accessibility complaints over original design flaws indefinitely against subsequent property owners who were not the original builders.[Fox News]
- Under the newly established framework, the clock for filing Fair Housing Act design and construction challenges begins on the date a building receives its official certificate of occupancy.[Fox News]
- Administrative complaints must now be filed with HUD within one year, and private civil lawsuits in federal court must be filed within two years of construction completion.[Fox News]
- HUD Secretary Scott Turner and Assistant Secretary Craig Trainor stated that the previous policy exceeded the department's statutory authority and ignored congressional statutes of limitations.[Fox News]
- According to internal agency data cited by HUD, property owners spent over $112 million on accessibility retrofits over the last five years to qualify for Federal Housing Administration refinancing.[Fox News]