Fair housing rules on Jinu
If you advertise a place to live, federal law bars you from stating a preference, a limitation or any discrimination based on a protected class. That is the Fair Housing Act, 42 U.S.C. 3604(c), and it applies to the words in your advertisement, not only to who you eventually rent or sell to. Many states and cities protect more classes on top of that.
The federal protected classes
- Race
- Color
- Religion
- National origin
- Sex, which HUD has interpreted since 2021 to include sexual orientation and gender identity
- Familial status, meaning families with children under 18, pregnant people, and anyone securing custody of a child
- Disability
Your state or city may add others. Source of income, meaning a housing voucher or public assistance, is protected in many places. Age, marital status, military status and citizenship status are protected in some. Jinu treats source of income as protected everywhere, because getting it wrong is expensive and getting it right costs nothing.
What this covers on Jinu
The Property category, for sale and for rent, and Stays. It covers the title, the description, and anything else you write into the listing. It also covers what you say afterwards in a message: the advertisement is where the law starts, not where it stops.
How Jinu screens listings
Property and stay listings are checked for language that indicates a protected-class preference. A listing that trips that check is held for human review instead of being published. It is not deleted and you are not banned. A person looks at it, and if the phrasing was innocent it is released.
The check is deliberately cautious, so it occasionally holds a listing that was fine. Holding a legitimate listing for a few hours is an inconvenience. Publishing an unlawful advertisement is a federal civil matter for the person who wrote it, which is you.
Describe the property, not the person
That single rule keeps almost everybody out of trouble. Facts about the unit, the building, the lease and the neighborhood are yours to state freely. Statements about who would suit it are where the risk lives.
Where you stand legally
Jinu is not your lawyer, and screening a listing is not legal advice or a finding that it complies. You are responsible for your own listing. If you rent out property regularly, read HUD's advertising guidance or ask a local attorney, particularly about your state and city rules, which are usually broader than the federal ones.