FAIRFIELD — The city is hosting a free first time home buyer certification workshop on June 29.

Hours are 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. The event is in partnership with the Fair Housing Advocates of Northern California.
A panel of experts will cover topics including:

• The homebuying process and steps to homeownership
• Housing affordability
• Financial and credit management
• The lending process and fair lending
• Federal, state, and local programs and resources

Participants who complete the workshop will receive a certificate which may qualify them for below market rate homeownership opportunities and other first-time homebuyer programs.

Pre-registration is required, and participants must complete the entire session to obtain a HUD certificate. Priority will be given to Fairfield residents. Registration will close on June 25 or until seats are filled.

To register please visit: https://www.tfaforms.com/5131337

For more information, or if you have special needs, please contact us in advance at [email protected] or [email protected].

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OAKLAND, Calif. (KGO) -- An East Oakland homeowner has reached a settlement agreement with a California appraiser and a mortgage company after receiving an appraisal that came in more than $300,000 lower than expected. The Black homeowner alleged in a complaint with the California Civil Rights Department that she was discriminated against due to her race.

In December 2021, in the thick of the COVID-19 pandemic when home mortgage loan rates were at historic lows, the East Oakland homeowner applied to refinance her mortgage to take out money from the equity in her home to pay for home repairs.

The details of the allegations were shared by the Fair Housing Advocates of Northern California (FHANC) in a release to ABC7 News announcing the settlement agreement.

The name of the mortgage company was not publicized as a part of the terms agreed to in the settlement. The homeowner asked ABC7 News not to share her identity.

The appraiser hired by the lender appraised the homeowner's property at $785,000--a value much lower than the homeowner expected.

"First thing I thought was he doesn't like me because of my race," the homeowner told ABC7 News. "I wasn't happy with the amount of what he valued my home at. And then I looked at the (comparable homes) in my area, and I knew something was wrong."

The homeowner asked the lender to reconsider the value in a process known as reconsideration of value (ROV).
The company sent the report back to the same appraiser who did not raise the value of the home.

"I was very hurt and disappointed and got upset and cried a little bit," the homeowner said. "He was discriminating against me because of who I was. I was single, a senior. But he felt that I, my property, wasn't of value."

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One of Sonoma County’s most prominent affordable housing developers has settled a federal complaint that alleged it discriminated against people with disabilities.

As a result of the settlement, Burbank Housing Development Corporation and Burbank Housing Management agreed to pay $41,500 and require employees training in fair housing laws, among other conditions. Burbank has developed and/or manages more than 70 housing properties in the North Bay.

The Santa Rosa nonprofit affordable housing developer was the subject of an administrative complaint filed with the federal government in 2022 by Fair Housing Advocates of Northern California, which said in a news release that for many years it had been receiving complaints from Burbank tenants.

The complaints alleged that Burbank employees in various ways responded unreasonably and/or slowly to their requests for access to accommodations for their disabilities — including by requiring that assistance dogs be a certain weight or breed — or denied their requests.

The 2022 filing was with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Under the terms of the settlement, Burbank did not admit to any wrongdoing or violation but also acknowledged that “they have an affirmative duty not to discriminate.”

Click here to read the article on Press Democrat's website.

In the second North Bay settlement announced within a two-week period in April, a San Rafael-based fair housing advocacy organization settled a housing complaint against Burbank Housing Development Corp. and Burbank Housing Management.

The Sonoma County affordable housing developer manages or owns more than 70 housing properties in Sonoma and Napa counties. It settled the legal complaint filed with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity for $41,500, Fair Housing Advocates of Northern California reported April 15.

Complaints filed in June 2022 accused the nonprofit of failing to abide by laws that guard against discriminatory practices against people with disabilities.

Fair Housing and the Sonoma County Tenants Union representatives met with renters who claimed they were “experiencing barriers to accessing reasonable accommodations from Burbank Management.”

One such disability allegation involved a tenant who wanted to adopt cats at the Parkwood Apartments on Montecito Boulevard, which allows pets. The dispute between the management and tenant involved the documentation surrounding the pet adoption.

“She didn’t fill out the necessary paperwork. It was frustrating,” said James Perez, the complex manager. “We’ve approved many pets. We’re not here to say no to anybody (wanting to have one).”
The complex has since streamlined the paperwork required to keep pets on the premises, he said. A policy change was also made in a concession to having a cat “on a leash” on the premises.

FHANC v. Burbank Signed Complaint - 6.30.22.pdf

Burbank agreed overall to consider “reasonable accommodation requests,” without an admission of guilt or wrongdoing, Burbank Housing spokesman Patrick Montgomery said.

“The agreement does not constitute an admission of wrongdoing by Burbank Housing nor the evidence of a determination by HUD that there was any violation of the Fair Housing Act or any other law by Burbank,” Montgomery said.

According to Fair Housing Advocates, disability-related discrimination ranked the most prominent of complaint calls in 2022-23 per county in the North Bay. The percentage of disability-related complaints in Marin County was 92, which is 82% of the complaint calls; Sonoma County had 96 at 90% rate; and Solano County with 57, comprising 84%.

Click here to read the article on the North Bay Business Journal website.

A Novato apartment complex has settled a discrimination complaint filed by Northern California fair housing advocates with the state regarding its ban on renting to Section 8 housing applicants, housing authorities reported.

As part of the settlement, Novato Park Apartments on Novato Boulevard agreed March 21 to pay $35,000 and change its policy to rent to those using the federal housing assistance program. In addition, the apartment complex must advertise all vacancies on AffordableHousing.com and include “Equal Opportunity Housing Provider” on promotional materials, among other mandates.

Click here to read the article on the North Bay Business Journal website.

A four-month investigation in three North Bay counties found that housing discrimination based on national origin was more common in Sonoma County than Marin or Solano counties, but that Marin had the highest rate of discrimination overall.

Fair Housing Advocates of Northern California, or FHANC, examined rental practices at 20 properties in each county, using testers who posed by phone or email as either Latina or white potential renters with children.

The investigation tested for discrimination at the pre-application stage based on familial status (the presence of children) or national origin or a combination of both. It did not name specific properties, landlords or property management companies.

A small number of tests in Marin and Solano counties were discarded because of inconclusive results.

At four properties tested in Sonoma County, or 20%, managers, agents or landlords showed clear evidence of discrimination against the Latina tester based on her origin, according to the investigation; three other properties, or 15% of those tested, showed “some or potential evidence” of discrimination on the basis of national origin.

In Marin, 5% of properties tested showed clear evidence of national origin discrimination, while 26%showed some or potential evidence.

One of the Sonoma County examples of discrimination took place in Penngrove, said Caroline Peattie, executive director of San Rafael-based FHANC, a housing rights and advocacy group.

There, a Latina tester who called to inquire about an apartment was invited to view it, but after she mentioned she had two children, she was told it was too small and “it wouldn’t work.”

However, when a white tester later called and expressed interest in the unit for herself and two children, the owner said nothing about family size and offered to show her the apartment that night.

In an example from the city of Sonoma, a tester posing as a Latina with two kids responded to a listing and, Peattie said, was told by the landlord that he was prioritizing applicants with one or two occupants.

He said he would show her the unit but already had many interested applicants, many of them single occupants. When a tester posing as a white woman with two kids inquired about the same property the next day, the same person offered to show her the unit the next day. The landlord did not mention wanting to prioritize smaller households.

The investigation was conducted January through April 2023 and made public last month. FHANC serves only Marin, Sonoma and Solano counties.

‘Additional barriers’
“Particularly for single Latinx mothers, both familial status and national origin discrimination end up posing additional barriers to housing at a time when the Bay Area housing market is already extraordinarily tight,” said Peattie.

The most overall housing discrimination occurred in Marin County — where 67% of the tests revealed at least some evidence of discrimination — the FHANC investigation concluded. Marin also had the most discrimination based on familial status, 53% of the properties tested, the investigation found.

“What this tells me is that in both (Marin and Sonoma) counties there's a lot more work that needs to be done around educating housing providers about fair housing laws,” Peattie said.

Jennie Rihl, president of the 66-member Marin/Sonoma chapter of the National Association of Residential Property Managers, or NARPM, said the findings were not surprising — with a caveat.

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Colleen Arnold, as she was being honored for her volunteer work at the annual Heart of Marin luncheon last week, commented on the event’s annual youth awards, saying they make her feel like “I’m not doing enough.” Many in the audience at the San Rafael event shared her summation.

Soon after, a number of local teens were honored for their seemingly tireless commitment to needs, large and small. Many worked on multiple causes, locally and nationally, while also getting top grades in school. They were among those honored at the Center for Volunteer and Nonprofit Leadership’s 31st awards ceremony where they turned the spotlight on Marin’s nonprofits and their generous volunteers.

It is a heartwarming, hope-inspiring and, at times, humbling event, held this year at the Marin Center Exhibit Hall. It is an annual tribute to the thousands of community volunteers and local nonprofit leaders and supporters who strive to make a difference – big and small, but both just as important – in our county.

Arnold was honored for her leadership with the Matrix Parent Network and Resource Center, a longstanding nonprofit that provides support for families with children with special needs. She was among the 124 nominees across eight categories, from youth volunteers and lifetime achievement to corporate community service and “Volunteer of the Year.”

The nominations are made by local nonprofits, screened by teams of community leaders who select the awardees.

For example, Ghilotti Bros. Inc, an historic business leader in our county, was honored for its years of donating money, time and equipment for local community educational and sports projects, from a school butterfly garden to a sports court at San Quentin State Prison, as well as its ongoing support for local construction training programs.

Mike Wing, a volunteer with Call of the Sea, was named 2023 Volunteer of the Year, honored for his work with the nonprofit sailing program and its water-based education programs as well as his impressive anti-pollution work and efforts to grow awareness about microplastic pollutants.

Fair Housing Advocates of Northern California won the award for Achievement in Nonprofit Excellence; NAMI Marin Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Team for Excellence in Innovation; Chandra Alexandre, chief executive officer of Community Action Marin, for the Excellence in Leadership; and Berta Campos-Anicetti was awarded the Lifetime Achievement for her 34 years of work in community health education programs for Latino families. CNVL’s awards committee cited for her work to remove barriers and build trust, most recently shown in her effective outreach work to increase COVID-19 vaccination rates.

Similar to Arnold, she spoke of how she has found inspiration in the Heart of Marin awards ceremonies she has attended in the past.

The youths honored this year included Surabhi Chinta, for her work with The Marine Mammal Center; Ryder Lariviere for his work and leadership with the Boy Scouts, locally and nationally; Kate Van Hooser, a volunteer nominated by Marin’s Extra Food nonprofit; Marcos Vega of Youth Transforming Justice and his work with the Marin Youth Court restorative justice program; and Olivia Villanova, a nominee for her work with Becca’s Closet Redwood High School chapter, where she has helped collect and provide around 400 free prom dresses for local high school students.

Many of these teens were multi-tasking volunteers, donating their time and talent to more than one nonprofit or cause.

As CVNL’s CEO Linda Jacobs, who emceed the luncheon, put it, the work of Marin’s nonprofits, their volunteers and supporters is “absolutely amazing, inspiring and hopeful.”

The Heart of Marin event was a fitting showcase and tribute for the important work and heartfelt service that goes on, most often quietly, around our county.

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MARIN COUNTY, Calif. (KGO) -- In the North Bay, a new fair housing report finds that landlords in Marin and two other counties are discriminating against Latino renters and families with children. Those findings have been uncovered by Fair Housing Advocates of Northern California.

The nonprofit says rental housing discrimination is a real thing in the North Bay.
"We wanted to see how Latinx parents were being treated at the pre-application rental inquiry stage," said Fair Housing Advocates Attorney Julia Howard-Gibbon.

Howard-Gibbon says between January and April of 2023, they investigated landlords at random, operating 60 rental properties in Marin, Solano and Sonoma Counties and found some level of discrimination at 58% of the properties.

Advocates say Marin County had the highest incidence of discrimination at about 66%. In its investigation, the organization says 52% of test calls to landlords made by trained testers reveled evidence of discrimination against renters with children, and 31% showed evidence of discrimination against Latino renters.

"The Latina called up and said she had two children. Landlord said, sorry that's too small for a family of three. The white tester called and (they) said, 'Sure, that should be no problem. We can make it work,'" said Howard-Gibbon.
The report says Sonoma County saw a 35% discrimination level against Latinos. Solano County showed the least overall bias, at 25% against renters with children.

"We want landlords to understand what the law is. Maybe they are unaware that people in their office are saying these thing," Howard-Gibbon added.

Canal Alliance reacted to the report saying in a statement:
"This issue has impacted our community for far too long, denying Latinos and families with children their right to equal housing. Marin deserves better, and it's time to dismantle these discriminatory barriers and build a truly inclusive community where everyone can thrive," said CEO Omar Cabrera.
​
"I don't know what their bias was," said Joby Tapia, president of Marin Rental Property Owners Association.
Advocates for rental property owners question how the report was conducted.

"Most owners we talked to are well aware of fair housing laws. And regulations, racism is not the case," Tapia said.

"Finding one is significant. The fair housing act was passed in 1968. We still don't want to believe people are discriminating," Howard-Gibbon said.

Fair housing advocates say they will send letters to landlords who they believe discriminated against potential renters and could pursue legal action in the future.

Click here to read the entire article.
Click here to watch the ABC7 report on YouTube.

A company’s plans to build a city-sized community from scratch in Solano County are leaving a series of open questions about what this project could mean for low-income people.

California Forever on Monday hosted the final installment of a series of town halls in almost every city in Solano County. Crowded, contentious and charged with emotion, these events have offered the public a chance to gain more information about California Forever before the company presents concrete plans in the form of a ballot initiative next month.

Despite these extensive, in-depth talks about priorities and goals for the proposed development, there’s still at least one major uncertainty.

Who would actually be able to live there?

California Forever has committed to building housing “designed for all levels of incomes.” It has also floated the idea of providing down-payment assistance programs to help people including teachers, police officers and construction workers buy homes.

“The principle we have is that the people who build the community and the people who work in it should be able to live there,” Sramek said in an interview.

At this point, however, the company has not committed to building workforce housing. It has not said how many housing units, if any, it will set aside for low-income people. And it has not yet presented a coherent picture of how the new community would affect the cost of living in Solano County’s existing cities.

These unanswered questions leave people on the front lines of housing equity projects unsure what to think but fearing for the worst.

“The biggest concern right now is that mismatch between what they think of as housing for residents of many different brackets, and the reality of people in poverty in Solano County,” said Shannon McCaffrey, the managing attorney for the Solano County office of Legal Services of Northern California.

Caroline Peattie, executive director of Fair Housing Advocates of Northern California, said, “If they want the construction workers who build the housing there to actually be able to live there, then they should be committing right off the bat to building workforce housing.”

California Forever Head of Planning Gabriel Metcalf said low-cost housing is still on the table. However, the company’s focus is on “missing middle” housing: Medium-density homes at a medium price point.

“This is the type of housing that most cities in the Bay Area have the hardest time producing, so we think it’s a niche we can uniquely help serve, and deliver a lot of units that are affordable by design,” he said. “We are also having discussions about workforce housing with multiple stakeholders, as we try to balance out what we prioritize to reflect the desires of the community – between various competing priorities like creating workforce housing while also creating good paying jobs and also providing missing middle homes and downpayment assistance.”
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The company said it will be releasing a paper on the topic of housing equity in the new year.​
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