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Fair Housing Guidelines

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These Fair Housing Guidelines form part of the Lived-In Resident Terms of Service.

They apply to every Call, even when the Prospect introduces the prohibited subject.

1. Purpose#

A Lived-In Call may affect a Prospect’s housing decision.

You may share honest, firsthand Property information, but you may not steer, discourage, favor, exclude, or make housing recommendations based on a protected or personal characteristic.

Lived-In’s policy may prohibit conduct more broadly than the minimum requirements of a particular law.

2. Protected and Personal Characteristics#

You may not discriminate or make housing recommendations based on:

  • Race;
  • Color;
  • National origin;
  • Religion;
  • Sex;
  • Familial status;
  • Disability; or
  • Another characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, county, or local law.

Lived-In also prohibits demographic steering or exclusion based on characteristics such as:

  • Sexual orientation;
  • Gender identity;
  • Marital status;
  • Age;
  • Source of income;
  • Military or veteran status;
  • Language or accent;
  • Immigration assumptions; or
  • Another personal or demographic characteristic.

3. General Rule#

You may discuss any Property-related subject that otherwise complies with the Terms.

You may not:

  • Make statements based on information you do not personally know or reasonably believe to be accurate;
  • Present rumors, assumptions, speculation, online comments, or another person’s experience as verified fact;
  • Imply that your experience represents every resident, unit, floor, building, or period of time;
  • Misrepresent or exaggerate the frequency, seriousness, scope, or current status of an issue;
  • Disclose another person’s private information;
  • State or imply that you speak on behalf of the Property or Lived-In;
  • Guarantee safety, accessibility, availability, approval, legal compliance, or another outcome;
  • Provide professional or legal conclusions;
  • Encourage or discourage a Prospect based on a protected or personal characteristic; or
  • Make a statement prohibited elsewhere in these Guidelines.

You are not required to use particular wording or follow a script.

4. Prohibited Demographic Statements and Implications#

You may not describe, estimate, speculate about, compare, or imply the demographic composition of the Property, its residents, or the surrounding neighborhood.

You may not state or suggest:

  • Which racial, ethnic, national, religious, family, disability, sex, gender, age, or other demographic groups live at or near the Property;
  • Whether a particular person or household would fit in, belong, feel comfortable, or be welcome;
  • That a Property, floor, unit, building, or neighborhood is better suited for a particular group;
  • That a Prospect should choose or avoid the Property because of the identity or family composition of other people;
  • That the presence or absence of a group makes the Property safer, quieter, cleaner, better, worse, more desirable, or less desirable;
  • Where particular groups tend to live within the Property or surrounding area; or
  • A preference, limitation, warning, or judgment based on a protected or personal characteristic.

These prohibitions apply to:

  • Direct statements;
  • Indirect suggestions;
  • Coded language;
  • Jokes;
  • Comparisons;
  • Personal opinions;
  • Estimates;
  • Statistics; and
  • Answers to questions initiated by the Prospect.

5. No Steering#

Do not encourage or discourage a Prospect from a Property, unit, floor, building, or neighborhood because of a protected or personal characteristic.

Do not suggest that the Prospect would be more comfortable elsewhere because of:

  • The Prospect’s identity;
  • The Prospect’s family;
  • The Prospect’s religion;
  • A disability;
  • Race or national origin;
  • Sex;
  • Gender;
  • Age; or
  • Another personal characteristic.

Do not identify areas where particular groups allegedly live or would “fit better.”

6. Safety and Crime#

You may describe a specific event you personally experienced.

You may not:

  • Guarantee that the Property or neighborhood is safe;
  • Guarantee that the Property or neighborhood is unsafe;
  • Base a safety opinion on who lives in an area;
  • Associate crime with a race, nationality, religion, family status, disability, sex, gender, or another group;
  • Repeat crime rumors as fact; or
  • Tell the Prospect to avoid an area because of the people who live there.

A recommended response is:

I can share a specific event I personally experienced, but I cannot evaluate or guarantee safety. For objective crime and public-safety information, please review official public sources.

7. Families, Children, and Schools#

Do not:

  • Describe a Property as intended for families, adults, singles, or people without children;
  • Recommend or discourage the Property because the Prospect has or does not have children;
  • Comment on whether children are welcome;
  • Recommend a floor or unit to avoid children;
  • Describe the family composition of residents;
  • Evaluate schools for the Prospect; or
  • Predict whether a family will be comfortable.

You may describe a neutral physical feature you personally know, but you must not connect it to a demographic recommendation.

A recommended response is:

I can share my firsthand experience with the Property, but I cannot recommend housing based on family status. The Property can confirm its policies, and official sources can provide school information.

8. Disability, Accessibility, and Accommodations#

You may describe physical features you personally use or observe.

You may not:

  • Decide whether the Property is legally accessible;
  • Decide whether the Prospect qualifies for an accommodation;
  • Ask for medical details;
  • State whether an accommodation or modification will be approved;
  • Comment on whether a service or assistance animal is legitimate;
  • Discourage a person because of a disability; or
  • Recommend that a person with a disability choose another Property.

A recommended response is:

I can describe the physical features I personally use, but accessibility, accommodation, and assistance-animal questions should be discussed directly with the authorized Property team.

9. Religion, National Origin, Language, Race, Sex, and Gender#

Do not:

  • Describe religious institutions to imply who lives in the area;
  • Comment on accents, immigration status, nationality, or language ability;
  • Describe racial or ethnic changes in the neighborhood;
  • Suggest where a person of a particular background should live;
  • Make sexual or gender-based comments;
  • Use stereotypes to describe residents or management; or
  • Recommend housing based on religion, national origin, language, race, sex, gender, or sexual orientation.

10. Availability, Eligibility, and Approval#

You may not state or speculate that a Prospect is eligible or ineligible to rent.

Do not speculate about:

  • Application approval;
  • Credit requirements;
  • Income requirements;
  • Criminal-history policies;
  • Occupancy limits;
  • Reasonable accommodations;
  • Required documentation;
  • Unit availability; or
  • Lease eligibility.

A recommended response is:

I do not participate in leasing decisions. Please confirm eligibility, availability, pricing, and policies directly with the authorized leasing team.

11. Refusing or Ending a Call#

You may not refuse, cancel, shorten, or treat a Prospect differently because of a protected or personal characteristic.

You may end a Call for a legitimate, nondiscriminatory reason, including:

  • Threats;
  • Harassment;
  • Sexual conduct;
  • Requests for illegal activity;
  • Unauthorized recording;
  • Repeated violation of these Guidelines; or
  • A reasonable personal-safety concern.

Report the incident to Lived-In.

12. Required Redirect Procedure#

When asked a prohibited question:

  1. Decline to answer the prohibited portion;

  2. Explain that you can discuss only neutral, firsthand Property experience;

  3. Redirect to an appropriate neutral topic or official source; and

  4. Report repeated or serious violations to Lived-In.

A recommended general response is:

I can share my firsthand experience with the apartment and everyday life at the Property, but I cannot characterize the residents or recommend housing based on anyone’s personal background. I’m happy to answer a neutral question about my own experience.

13. No Retaliation or Improper Influence#

Report an attempt by the Property or another person to pressure you to violate these Guidelines.

Your compensation will not be reduced because you:

  • Refused to answer a prohibited question;
  • Redirected a Prospect;
  • Reported discriminatory conduct; or
  • Provided candid Property information in compliance with these Guidelines.

14. Consequences#

A material violation may result in:

  • Immediate intervention;
  • Ending the Call;
  • Suspension;
  • Termination;
  • Repayment of compensation for the affected Call; or
  • Another action allowed by the Terms.