On June 20, 2013, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas approved the settlement of a housing discrimination lawsuit alleging disability discrimination by UDR, Inc., the designer and builder of several multifamily housing developments near Dallas, Texas.
The lawsuit, filed in September 2012 by the National Fair Housing Alliance and the North Texas Fair Housing Center, alleged that since at least 2007, UDR and its affiliates designed and/or constructed multifamily dwellings, and common- and public-use areas, without the accessibility features required by the Fair Housing Act.
Under the terms of the settlement, UDR will make major renovations to three apartment complexes in Texas and pay $87,000 as compensation and for attorney’s fees. It will also provide additional education about fair housing laws to current and future employees, and will provide notices to existing tenants of additional alterations that can be made at the tenant’s option, without cost to the tenant.