A Latino civil rights group is suing a Pennsylvania-based property management company for denying two residents of Camden County, New Jersey, access to rental units based solely on their immigration status and other protected traits. It is the second time the group has sued the company.
MALDEF (Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund) and Saul Ewing LLP filed the federal lawsuit on behalf of a 39-year-old woman and her 34-year-old sister.
The sisters were born and raised in Egypt and are both authorized to live and work in the United States. The lawsuit challenges Altman Management Company’s and the Autumn Ridge apartment complex’s policy of denying rental units to immigrants who are not lawful permanent residents or visa-holders.
“Limiting housing to citizens and lawful permanent residents alone is unjustified and unlawful,” said Thomas A. Saenz, MALDEF president and general counsel. “Our nation’s best interests require the broad availability of housing, without arbitrary rules to exclude immigrants.”
In the complaint, attorneys argue that the defendants’ policy violates the federal Civil Rights Act of 1866, as codified at 42 U.S.C. § 1981, which prohibits discrimination based on alienage or lack of U.S. citizenship.
Additionally, by denying the sisters the opportunity to apply for an apartment unit or giving them full and equal consideration to their tenancy, the defendants’ rental agent violated New Jersey state law prohibiting discrimination based on religion, ethnicity, or nationality.
“Rather than treating the plaintiffs’ rental application in the same manner as applications submitted by U.S. citizens, the defendants focused on broad generalizations and stereotypes to dissuade the plaintiffs from applying, as well as enforcing a policy that targets non-permanent resident immigrants,” said Luis Lozada, MALDEF staff attorney. “Under such a policy, certain immigrants are guaranteed to encounter heavy barriers when applying for housing because of where they come from.”
In New Jersey, housing discrimination based on immigration or citizenship status is strictly illegal.
The New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (LAD) and protections under the Immigrant Tenant Protection Act prohibit landlords, real estate agents, and housing providers from treating anyone differently based on nationality, ancestry, or immigration status.
In June 2024, the sisters and their mother met with the Autumn Ridge community manager to apply for a unit in Blackwood, New Jersey.
During the visit, the mother of the two women was dressed in a hijab and an abaya, traditional attire for Muslim women. The apartment manager asked for the sisters’ identification and earnings statements.
Ms. Khamis produced her passport and student visa. Ms. Ibrahim, who has applied for asylum and possesses a work-only Social Security number, did not have her documents with her, but the manager told her she could email them within 48 hours.
As the manager reviewed Khamis’passport, she asked where they were from and asked if their mother was going to live with them, and they said, “No.” Afterwards, the manager showed them an unclean and generally undesirable rental unit to dissuade them from renting.
The next day, Ibrahim emailed her earnings statement and work-only Social Security card to the manager. That same day, the manager asked Ibrahim for a permanent resident card (green card).
When Ibrahim told the manager she did not have a green card, only an Employment Authorization card, the manager told Ibrahim that Autumn Ridge Apartments only accepts visas or permanent resident cards, and that she would have to “shred [the] application.”
Legislation that has been approved by committees in both chambers of the New Jersey Legislature would add legal protections for tenants against landlords who attempt to use immigration status to intimidate tenants when they exercise their housing rights, and prohibit landlords from evicting tenants on the basis of their citizenship status.
If the bill becomes law, tenants whose rights are violated would be able to seek damages, penalties, court costs, and attorneys’ fees against a landlord that engages in prohibited conduct.
“Housing discrimination of any kind is unacceptable, and protections for tenants against adverse actions by landlords extend to everyone, regardless of immigration status,” said Senate Majority Leader M. Teresa Ruiz. “Families deserve stability and security, not the fear of losing their housing or having their status weaponized against them. When every family has access to safe and stable housing, our communities are stronger, healthier, and more resilient.”
Altman Management Company LLC is a Pennsylvania-based construction company that operates nearly 80 apartment communities in Delaware, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania.
This is the second time MALDEF has sued the defendants.
In 2024, the organization sued the defendants on behalf of a DACA recipient, who was denied housing because of her immigration status. That case is said to be “still pending while a tentative settlement is finalized.”
The lawsuit was filed in the United States District Court in the District of New Jersey. Read the complaint HERE
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