Q&A – TENANT COMPLAINTS AND RETALIATION

Q&A – TENANT COMPLAINTS AND RETALIATION

Question: We just got notice that a resident filed a fair housing complaint! This resident is a longtime troublemaker and everything they said is a lie! I can't wait to make their life miserable - I'm sending them a noncompliance notice today for their violation of HOA rules! Can you just get this dismissed right away because the resident is nuts?!

Answer: I understand the frustration, but stop before you mail that notice. The most dangerous thing you can do right now is take any adverse action against this resident. First, the moment you learn of a complaint, call your attorney. Do not respond to the investigating agency on your own, and do not throw anything away. Gather and preserve every record. Those documents are what win or lose these matters.Note that such matters usually do not go quickly and there is no way to get it “dismissed right away.”Second, do not retaliate. The Act presumes that adverse action taken within six months of a protected complaint is retaliatory, and the burden falls on you to overcome that presumption. Serving a notice the same day you learn of the complaint is exactly the fact pattern the investigating agency hopes to find.That does not mean the resident gets a free pass. You may absolutely continue to hold them to the same standards as everyone else - the emphasis is on same. If the yard genuinely violates the rules, document it thoroughly, confirm you enforce that rule against every resident equally, and let your attorney review the notice before it goes out. Selective enforcement aimed at a complainant is a gift to the other side.