Housing cooperatives or co-ops are relatively common in the Detroit area. Co-ops offer a sense of community and reduce property maintenance obligations for individuals. They can be an affordable alternative to purchasing a standalone home. Unfortunately, even when co-ops offer competitive pricing, owners may fall behind on their payments and may eventually face eviction. Making the decision to evict a co-op resident due to non-payment is never easy, but it is sometimes necessary.
Those helping to manage the co-op generally need to ensure consistency during that process to avoid litigation and a potential loss of authority due to inconsistent rule enforcement.
Inconsistency can lead to discrimination claims
Both federal regulations and Michigan state laws require fair housing opportunities for people regardless of their protected characteristics. Factors including race, religion, age and national origin are among the characteristics that should not influence a person’s eligibility for specific housing opportunities.
Co-ops should have written policies regarding evictions that they follow exactly in the event of consistent non-payment or similar resident issues. Failing to follow community standards, possibly out of compassion for a person going through significant hardship, could lead to allegations of discrimination when enforcing community standards in the future.
Selective rule enforcement is a common form of discrimination. Those making decisions about people’s housing should not consider protected characteristics when deciding who can live in a co-op and when eviction is necessary. If a co-op has a history of offering some residents more lenience than others due to health challenges, advanced age or other personal challenges, such as divorce, those evicted later for justifiable reasons, such as non-payment, might assert that they are the victims of discrimination.
That may then lead to a protracted legal battle, financial losses, challenges with future evictions and reputation damage. While it may be difficult to choose to evict certain residents, especially if they have lived in the co-op for years, ensuring consistent and documented enforcement of the rules is important for the overall protection of the co-op.
Reviewing enforcement records, any pending evictions and co-op policies with a legal professional can help those operating a co-op avoid scenarios in which lenience and compassion result in future financial hardship. Appropriate actions can prevent claims of selective rule enforcement that could cause major headaches in the future.