What is disparate treatment with a housing example?

• A. A policy that treats all applicants the same regardless of protected class.
• B. A policy that results in a neutral effect that unintentionally affects a protected class.
• C. Intentional discrimination based on protected characteristics.
• D. A policy that applies the same terms to all applicants with no exceptions.

Answer: (C)

Disparate treatment happens when a decision-maker acts with the intent to discriminate against someone because of a protected characteristic. In housing, this would be a landlord who refuses to rent to a person specifically because of their race, religion, sex, national origin, disability, or familial status. That intentional choice to treat someone differently based on protected status is what defines disparate treatment.

This is different from a policy that is neutral on its face but has a disproportionate effect on a protected class (disparate impact), or a policy that applies the same terms to everyone with no exceptions. So a landlord who declines someone’s housing application solely because of a protected characteristic demonstrates disparate treatment.