A landlord may not discriminate against a tenant on the basis of "race, creed, color, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, religion, national origin, ancestry, pregnancy, parenthood, custody of a minor child, or mental or physical disability of the individual or such individual's friends or associates. . . ." Section 12-1-2, B.R.C. 1981. Certain exceptions are provided for: social, fraternal, religious, or educational organizations or clubs; landlords of single-sex or elderly (over 55) housing; and landlords who rent out a room in their homes. Other than denial of housing to an individual, discrimination also includes charging different rents or deposits, requiring different lengths of lease, or establishing different lease conditions on the basis of the above-listed categories.

Discrimination also includes racial, ethnic, religious or sexual harassment, and evicting under standards not applied to tenants of another race, national origin, etc. "Steering" is likewise illegal, i.e., showing minorities, foreigners, the handicapped or families with children some apartments but not others, or putting them in another building or on a separate floor.

Note that discrimination against students is not against the law, nor is discrimination on the basis of age (except minors under 18 living with parents). Therefore, a landlord can legally refuse all students, rent only to graduate students or those over 21. However, a landlord can not rent to American and refuse foreign students, or charge rent or deposits that are different for American and foreign students.

Under new federal and state laws, there are special requirements for the handicapped. A tenant may not be refused or treated differently because he uses a wheelchair or a walker, and landlords may not refuse or charge any deposit for a guide or service dog, even if they customarily have a "no pets" policy or charge extra deposits for dogs. Landlords must also make reasonable accommodations in rules, practices, policies and procedures to accommodate the handicapped, (such as reserving a parking space near the entrance), and landlords must also allow handicapped tenants to make reasonable structural changes to the apartment, (such as widening a door or installing grab bars), at the tenant's expense, if the change is necessary to give the tenant full enjoyment of the premises.

A tenant who believes that a landlord has discriminated against him or her or a landlord or tenant who wants clarification or a copy of the law should contact the Office of Human Rights, Department of Human Resources, 2160 Spruce St., 441-4364.

For further information about federal or state law, or to file a housing discrimination charge, call the Colorado Civil Rights Division at 894-2997 or the Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, (HUD), 672-5437.