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Two proptech companies will pay $100,000 in fines to the state and revamp their products after settling charges brought by Attorney General Maura Healey’s office that their software let apartment landlords discriminate against tenants.
Boston-based Buildium and Virginia-based Tenant Turner sold multifamily property management software in Massachusetts that let landlords automatically reject applications from prospective tenants who planned to use government-provided housing vouchers to pay part of their rent, and tenants with any felony convictions, Healey’s office said.
The companies marketed their tenant screening software as “fair housing-compliant.” However, it is illegal in Massachusetts to discriminate against prospective tenants based on how they pay for their housing or against tenants with certain felony convictions.
“Public rental assistance programs are critical to the economic security of the most vulnerable residents in Massachusetts, yet the source of income discrimination continues to be a pervasive practice amongst housing providers, creating a major barrier in the search for a safe and affordable place to live,” Healey said in a statement. “This software was designed to unlawfully exclude certain prospective tenants from consideration, and my office will take action to stop companies like these from perpetuating inequality and harming our communities.”
As part of the settlement, the companies are barred from offering any features in the tenant pre-qualification software that automatically reject applicants for receiving public assistance or past criminal convictions, that let landlords identify whether a prospective tenant has a housing voucher or indicate they have a preference for tenants based on their receipt of public assistance. The companies must also adopt new fair housing policies.
Healey’s office said that the charges against Buildium and Tenant Turner are part of a “broader investigation into the tenant screening and background check industry.” Her office said it is concerned that tenant screening software and other digital property management tools may disproportionately hurt minority and low-income Massachusetts residents.
