Fair Housing: California

This page is intended for informational purposes only and does not constitute, and should not be construed as, legal advice. This page is not intended to provide a mandatory standard of care for the industry.  

On these pages, you will find information about the protected classes in each state’s fair housing law as well as the cities and counties in the state’s three largest city or metropolitan areas that enforce additional fair housing protections. We highlight source of income protections, where applicable, that could substantially impact industry operations. Please see the footnotes. NAA also has resources on the federal fair housing protections that apply nationwide.

We are currently in the process of optimizing NAA’s Fair Housing Protected Class Resources. If you do not see a jurisdiction of interest, please reach out to the NAA Government Affairs Team at [email protected].

Information on this page is current as of March 2022.

California Protected Classes

(State of California Government Code § 12955; California Civil Code § 51 [Unruh Civil Rights Act]; California Civil Code § 51.2 [Unruh Civil Rights Act])

  • Race
  • Color
  • National Origin
  • Religion
  • Sex
  • Familial Status
  • Disability
  • Age
  • Ancestry
  • Gender
  • Gender Identity
  • Gender Expression
  • Genetic Information
  • Marital Status
  • Military Status
  • Sexual Orientation
  • Veteran Status
  • Immigration Status
  • Medical Condition
  • Citizenship
  • Arbitrary Status
  • Primary Language
  • Source of Income1

1“Source of Income” means lawful, verifiable income. This includes all government assistance and subsidies.

Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim Metro Area

(Los Angeles County Code § 13.70.040)​

In addition to enforcement of federal and state protected classes, this jurisdiction also includes the following protected classes:

  • HIV/AIDs Status

City of Los Angeles Protected Classes

(City of Los Angeles Municipal Code § 51.03 and Municipal Code § 45.67)​

In addition to enforcement of federal, state, and county protected classes, this jurisdiction also includes the following protected classes:

  • Ethnic Background
  • Creed
  • Partnership Status
  • Employment Status

 

PLEASE NOTE: Los Angeles City and County both define source of income as any lawful source of income, rental assistance, subsidy, or financial aid from any person, including but not limited to a federal, state or local  government, or non-profit or charitable agency, whether paid directly to the program participant, landlord or his or her representative, including but not limited to the Section 8 voucher program, the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority's Rapid Re-Housing program or any other housing subsidy program, homeless assistance or prevention program or security deposit assistance program.

This jurisdiction emphasizes enforcement of federal and state protected classes

City of Anaheim Protected Classes

This jurisdiction emphasizes enforcement of federal, state, and county protected classes

City of Irvine Protected Classes

(City of Irvine Code of Ordinances § 3-5-203)

This jurisdiction emphasizes enforcement of federal, state, and county protected classes

City of Santa Ana Protected Classes

In addition to the enforcement of federal, state, and county protected classes, this jurisdiction also includes the following jurisdictions:

  • Ethnicity
  • Pregnancy
  • HIV/AIDs Status

(Riverside County Code § 9.08.040)​

In addition to enforcement of federal and state protected classes, this jurisdiction also includes the following protected classes:

  • HIV/AIDS/ARS Status

City of Long Beach Protected Classes

(City of Long Beach Municipal Code § 8.94.030)

This jurisdiction emphasizes enforcement of federal, state, and county protected classes  

City of Moreno Valley Protected Classes

This jurisdiction emphasizes enforcement of federal, state, and county protected classes

City of Riverside Protected Classes

(City of Riverside Code of Ordinances § 19.850.010 et seq.)

This jurisdiction emphasizes enforcement of federal, state, and county protected classes

This jurisdiction emphasizes enforcement of federal and state protected classes.

City of Fontana Protected Classes

This jurisdiction emphasizes enforcement of federal, state, and county protected classes.

City of San Bernardino Protected Classes

This jurisdiction emphasizes enforcement of federal, state, and county protected classes.

This jurisdiction emphasizes enforcement of federal and state protected classes.

City of Oxnard Protected Classes

This jurisdiction emphasizes enforcement of federal, state, and county protected classes.

San Diego Metro Area

(San Diego County Code § 32.804)​

In addition to enforcement of federal and state protected classes, this jurisdiction also includes the following protected classes:

  • HIV/AIDs status

City of San Diego Protected Classes

(City of San Diego Municipal Code §§52.9501, 52.9604; §98.0801)2

This jurisdiction emphasizes enforcement of federal, state, and county protected classes.

2“Source of Income” here means lawful, verifiable income. This includes all government and nonprofit assistance and subsidies.

San Francisco-Oakland-Berkeley Metro Area

Alameda County Code §§ 6.24.040

In addition to enforcement of federal, state, and county protected classes, this jurisdiction also includes the following protected classes:

  • Ethnicity3
  • HIV/AIDs Status

Oakland Protected Classes

(§§ 9.40.050, 9.48.030)

This jurisdiction emphasizes enforcement of federal, state, and county protected classes

Fremont Protected Classes

This jurisdiction emphasizes enforcement of federal, state, and county protected classes

3These protected classes are listed in a local fair housing source, not statutory code.

(County Code § 460-2.008)

In addition to enforcement of federal, state, and county protected classes, this jurisdiction also includes the following protected classes:

  • HIV/AIDs Status

(County Code §§ 5.52.030; 5.53.010; 6.80.050)

In addition to enforcement of federal, state, and county protected classes, this jurisdiction also includes the following protected classes:

  • HIV/AIDs Status
  • Parenthood

(County Code § 3.104.030)

In addition to enforcement of federal, state, and county protected classes, this jurisdiction also includes the following protected classes:

  • HIV/AIDs Status

(Police Code § 3304; Administrative Code § 12C.1)4

In addition to enforcement of federal and state protected classes, this jurisdiction also includes the following protected classes:

  • HIV/AIDs Status
  • Place of Birth
  • Creed
  • Weight
  • Transgender Status
  • Ethnicity
  • Height
  • Domestic Partner Status
  • Association with class members
  • Retaliation

 

4San Francisco is a consolidated city-county

(County Code §§ B13-65; B13-95; B37-2)

In addition to enforcement of federal and state protected classes, this jurisdiction also includes the following protected classes:

  • HIV/AIDs
  • Housing Subsidy or Assistance

San Jose Protected Classes

In addition to enforcement of federal, state, and county protected classes, this jurisdiction also includes the following protection:

  • Protection against retaliatory action for logging a fair housing complaint