Attorney General Kris Mayes has introduced a public awareness campaign to address housing discrimination and inform renters about their legal rights. The initiative will feature advertisements in both English and Spanish on various online platforms, streaming services, and radio.
"Every Arizonan deserves to be treated fairly and equally under the law when securing housing," stated Attorney General Mayes. "My office is committed to ensuring that all residents understand their rights, recognize what constitutes illegal discrimination, and know what steps to take if they have been discriminated against."
The campaign's advertisements will focus on practices potentially violating the Arizona Fair Housing Act. These include discrimination related to emotional support animals, retaliation for reporting discrimination, demands of sexual favors for repairs, being charged higher deposits due to familial status, and disability discrimination.
Attorney General Mayes advises Arizonans to take proactive measures against housing discrimination:
1. Thoroughly read all housing-related paperwork. If unclear, ask questions and keep records of the inquiries and responses.
2. Save important documents such as lease agreements, rental applications, policies, notices, eviction proceedings documentation, incident reports, police reports, and property advertisements.
3. Maintain copies of communications with property owners or managers including emails, texts, voicemails, work order requests; interactions with organizations providing rental assistance; complaints sent to management or government agencies; reasonable accommodation requests; financial transaction records; HOA fines; payments confirmations.
4. Document the property's condition through photos or videos at move-in and move-out stages.
5. Ensure all promises are documented in writing.
6. Use a buddy system during meetings with property owners or agents.
7. Keep an organized timeline of events.
Mayes encourages anyone who suspects they have faced housing discrimination to file a complaint with the Civil Rights Division of the Attorney General’s Office.
Video ads are accessible in English here [link] and Spanish here [link].