The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has approved a conciliation agreement between JPMorgan Chase Bank and an African American woman, resolving the woman’s claim that the mortgage lender, relying on an appraisal that she believed was inaccurate, valued her home at an amount lower than its actual worth because of her race, HUD announced.
“The race of a homeowner and the racial composition of their neighborhood must not influence the valuation of a home,” HUD Acting Assistant Secretary for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity Jeanine Worden said in a release. “The Fair Housing Act prohibits the consideration of race as a factor in the appraisal of a home and in the provision of other real estate-related services.”
The Fair Housing Act makes it unlawful to discriminate on the terms, conditions, or privileges of the sale of a dwelling because of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, disability, and familial status. The act also makes it unlawful for any person or other entity whose business includes residential real estate-related transactions to discriminate against any person in making available such a transaction, or in the terms or conditions of such a transaction, HUD said.
Residential real estate-related transactions covered by the act include making loans secured by residential real estate and appraising residential real property.
“Discrimination in homebuying, mortgage lending, and property appraisal deprive qualified individuals of an equal opportunity to pursue homeownership as a path to family stability and financial security. HUD is committed to ensuring that all housing, whether for rent or for sale, is free from discrimination,” Worden added.
Under the conciliation agreement, JPMorgan Chase Bank will pay $50,000 to the woman and provide home-lending advisors and client-care specialists with mandatory training on the Reconsideration of Value process and fair lending issues related to appraisals, including specifics regarding how to handle complaints of discrimination in the appraisal process.