OFFICIALS WEIGH SURVEY ON FAIR HOUSING TREATMENT:ADVOCATES SAY LATINOS RECEIVE LESS FAVORABLE TREATMENT THAN WHITES WHEN SEEKING RENTAL HOUSING

Fair housing advocates say a new survey suggests that Latinos with

identifiable accents receive less favorable treatment than whites in seeking

North Bay rental housing.

But officials for a regional association of landlords and property managers

questioned the survey's accuracy, even as they agreed on the need for fair

treatment of renters and ongoing education for those who rent.

The survey by Fair Housing of Marin found that in 14 of 60 cases a Latino

caller received different treatment than a white ''tester'' who later inquired

about the same rental ad. The cases included 20 each from Marin, Napa and

Sonoma counties.

At times, the Latino tester placed three calls for an advertised rental

without response but the white tester did receive a call back. In other

instances, the white tester was quoted a lower rent or security deposit. At

times the rental representatives asked the Latino but not the white tester

about the number of family members.

''It's not a large sample but it certainly indicates that something is

going on that is hurting Latino families,'' said Nancy Kenyon, executive

director for Fair Housing of Marin.

But Del Dimmick, president of the 325-member North Coast Rental Housing

Association, said their members work hard to learn and to train property

managers on fair housing laws.

''The color of skin, the accent of their voice, those things don't make any

difference,'' Dimmick said. He acknowledged there could be some ''bad

landlords'' out there but said most understand they must treat all potential

renters professionally because ''we want to rent our units.''

Fair Housing of Marin conducted the study last spring. A Latino tester

inquired first on randomly selected ads for houses and apartments in various

rental price ranges. After a Latino tester had made contact or left three

messages, a white tester called. At times the two talked with different

representatives about the rental.

As preparation, a linguistics professor from St. Louis's Washington

University found in his own survey of 116 listeners that the ''vast majority''

could accurately say from voice recordings whether the involved testers were

Latino or white.

Six of Sonoma County's 20 cases showed a clear difference in the treatment

of the Latino testers, the survey reported.

In another 10 cases, the different treatment was more mixed. For example, a

white tester might receive a lower quote for rent but a higher deposit than

did the Latino tester.

You can reach Staff Writer Robert Digitale at 521-5285 or e-mail

rdigitale@pressdemocrat.com