These cases involve more than a dozen enforcement actions filed with the District of Columbia and Montgomery County Offices of Human Rights, alleging that seven housing companies denied prospective older tenants the opportunity to receive their advertisements on Facebook for apartments because of the prospective tenants’ ages.
These are the first civil rights cases involving Facebook advertising to name and take legal action against the housing companies that have allegedly engaged in age discrimination when sending paid ads on Facebook.
The seven companies housing hit with the charges are: Bozzuto, Greystar, Kettler, Wood Partners, Fairfield Residential, Fore Property, and The Tower Companies. All seven companies are alleged to have sent age-restricted Facebook housing ads in the past year, and they comprise some of the largest companies that lease or manage apartments in country.
The lawsuit seeking a commitment from these seven companies to implement non-discriminatory policies throughout their digital advertising, educate and train their staff on these policies, monitor their compliance, and compensate older residents who were denied information about renting apartments.
For more information about these cases, please contact Matthew Handley at 202-559-2411, or [email protected]. Copies of the charges filed in the District of Columbia can be found HERE, and copies of the charges filed in Montgomery County, Maryland can be found HERE.