I need a roomate asap! m-f 18-33. rent is 400 per month. Includes all utilities. Will share house with 27 year old female and dog and a male will be moving in may 15th. Pivate bedroom and will share rest of house. washer and dryer in basement. In north end please email me if interested. Serious inquiries only please

What breed is the dog?

He is an english springer spaniel. Very loveable and sweet. He was abused so he is very submissive.

moved to mail call

Isn't age discrimination in real estate transactions illegal in the State of Maryland? What have you got against people over 33 anyway?

you can't be serious B?

brynne's looking for a roommate, not sellin' a house....

I'm 100% serious. Whether she's leasing out a room in the house she owns or sub-letting to somebody, she is advertising a legal real estate transaction.

If age discrimination is illegal, as I believe it is, then she should be made aware of it so she can change that advertisement, before somebody files a lawsuit. How would you like it if she advertsed for a Caucasian roommate? It's the same thing, legally-speaking.

If she's just seeking a roomate and its her name on the lease (if there is one), then she can specify anything she wants.

If she was the landlord or property owner, then she would have issues.

You are over 33, maybe she knows you and stereoptyped everyone else.

Youll pardon our growling alpha-male. He's never been abused enough.

Well I'm pretty sure the first thing she'll ask any prospective roommate is "You are one of th nuts on the H/M forums are you?"

I say that bull-cr@p theory needs to be tested in court.

What idiot would move in without some kind of legal agreement or status? If she's sub-letting the place, she had bettter get permission from her landlord, too.

Then again what kind of person wants to live with a couple who are planning on shacking up, as it seems this one is?

You WT people just kill me.

Somebody should report this ad to the State's Attorney's office.

Yup. I agree. They have nothing better to do anyhow.

From the Washingtonpost

Looks like B was right.

Doesn't say anything about age.

Listening to Dr. Laura, eh?

What I was hoping for all along, *sigh*, was for someone to reply with just the kind of info Udmas finally did.

One related question I have, though: I know that there are apartment complexes and other communities that ARE given some kind of special permission to limit their residents to the elderly and specifically exclude younger folks and families with children. There's a community on the outskirts of Frederick that's all duplexes with old folks living in them, and I'm certain that they specifically exclude people below a certain age and/or families with children.

So there had been some question in my mind as to whether age might not be as protected as the other classes. Any intelligent rebuttal to my post would've said so if that were true, and Udmas has now found proof that age IS considered protected under the Fair Housing Act. So I guess these retirement communities have to get special permission somehow, and the ad posted here violates Federal law, as I had thought.

You know, if people would post intelligent rebuttals based on researched facts, instead of just attacking me because they don't like me, it would go a lot better. I had read of the requriements of the Fair Housing Act several years ago so I knew what I was posting about, and it was based on that knowledge that I posted. (In fact, I was aware of it mainly because of articles I had read about how it prevents Christian property owners from excluding unmarried couples and homosexuals from any properties that they choose to rent out, and therefore violates their religious rights of conscience - but it's the law of the land and any Christian who wants to rent out a room in their house should be forewarned. But I digress.) Respondants all just tossed in their half-baked uninformed opinions and personal attacks (including both Moderators). Until now.

No. Listening to a number of different Christian public policy organizations. Issues regarding the Fair Housing Act's implications for Christian property owners have been the subject of a number of articles in the Christian press.

A good Christian couple whose kids have grown up and left home would rather not rent out their spare bedroom to an unmarried couple or a pair of homosexuals, but unfortunately if such couples apply, they may not legally exclude them. There have been successful lawsuits against Christians where this was the exact situation.

So I think it's only fair, then, that the law ALSO prohibits an unmarried couple from excluding an elderly person from renting out their spare bedroom, and I might encourage legal action against the perpetrators if they persist in spite of being warned - IMO, Christians shouldn't be the only ones who are punished when they break these laws.

I don't have time nor the inclination to listen to Dr. Laura however. She's really not affiliated with any of the mainstream Christian media I follow.

Dumb question: Was that intended to be some kind of insult? You know, you and Yoss are really making yourself look like a couple of jerks. Maybe if you both stopped hating on me and took a more neutral approach? Just an idea.

A suit has been filed against Craigslist about advertising housing on the net.

http://chicago.craigslist.org/about/FHA.html

Some links about roommates etc.

Note age is not listed for Maryland, so maybe age is not protected in housing in Maryland. If so I am wrong and have no problem with having been corrected by an authoritative source. Though I think I was justified in raising the issue, because most people are probably completely unaware of the law in this area and the fact that it does indeed apply to roommates.

Those who replied thinking that this was somehow exempt from the Fair Housing Act or not a matter requiring compliance with laws against discrimination can now avoid expensive lawsuits and Federal prosecution.

What Udmas posted is not entirely accurate. States and counties have their own variations of the law... here are Maryland's, including some in the surrounding area. With that said, the OP was not incorrect in posting age in her advertisement. Hope this doesn't keep you up at nights BMIC.

While the classes of persons protected by the advertising discrimination laws are also discussed above, it is worth summarizing them once again here:

Federal Law: race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, national origin

D.C. Law: race, color, religion, national origin, sex, age, marital status, personal appearance, sexual orientation, family responsibilities, physical handicap, matriculation, political affiliation, source of income, place of residence or business.

Maryland Law: race, color, religion, sex, familial status, national origin, marital status, physical or mental handicap

Virginia Law: race, color, religion, national origin, sex, age, marital status, disability.

You're right Phluux, I was thinking about PA. I never thought that MD. would be different.

If you only want to rent to certain people just have them come fill out a rental application then pitch the ones you don't like. There's no law that says you have to rent to the first person though the door.

I listen to AM talk radio and her show is on almost every day. "Shacking up" is a term she uses very frequently. It's one of her signature sayings.

Correction: they're not ADVERTISING discrimination laws, they're HOUSING discrimination laws.

Regardless of what you advertise, if you turn away somebody and they can come up with any reasonable allegation that it was based on a protected characteristic (or sometimes even an unreasonable allegation), you're going to court!

H stop...

Not true. Age isn't protected under the Federal or Maryland Fair Housing laws.

After incinerating the classifieds Boardman adjourned to the cartoons where he accused Lucy of consulting without a license.