Czech ombudsman addresses case of municipality refusing to rent to Romani mother

Czech ombudsman Pavel Varvařovský has published a description of a recent case handled by his office on its official website in order to remind municipalities that when they evaluate the solvency of prospective tenants renting municipally-owned apartments, the state-awarded parental benefit must be considered income. If it is not, the municipalities risk discriminating against single mothers in particular.

Varvařovský was handling the case of a municipality refusing to rent to a Romani mother. He backed the woman’s complaint, saying that the municipality concerned did not have transparent rules in place for selecting tenants. He did not rule out the possibility that the woman had been discriminated against.

The housing commission concerned initially approved renting an apartment to the woman but changed that decision several days later. Members of the commission had “determined” that the woman wanted to live with her partner and her four children in a two-bedroom apartment and that she was reportedly “socially troubled.” The woman believed the commission was discriminating against her as a mother, because her only income was the parental benefit, given that she had four children to care for. She also complained that many other people in the community had rented municipally-owned apartments without sufficient income.

Varvařovský asked the mayor of the municipality concerned for an explanation. She responded that the municipality is permitted to do with its property as it likes, based on its own best judgment. “Naturally, the primary aim of the law on municipalities is to respect the interests of citizens and the public interest, which distinguishes it from the private sector,” the mayor added.

The ombudsman rejected her argument. He said that on the contrary, a municipality, as a public entity, may never proceed arbitrarily when leasing its property, but must behave predictably and transparently toward all residents.

The mayor emphasized that the members of the housing commission are not obligated to justify their decisions. In her view, they most probably realized that it would not be appropriate to house a family of six in a two-bedroom apartment and that it could cause difficulties in the future. She also said the bureaucrats had determined the family were “troublemakers” as far as relations with their neighbors were concerned. The fact that the prospective tenant was unemployed and that her partner had submitted a fixed-term work contract as proof of income was said to have played a role in the commission rejecting her. The certainty of the rent being paid was, in the mayor’s view “disputable at the very least”. She said the decision had not been influenced by the woman’s Romani origin.

A completely different description of the family, however, was given by their social worker, who said there had been no problems with the woman and that she was doing her best to meet her obligations. The woman is paying off a debt incurred in the year 2008, when she divorced, for back rent, but she has recognized that debt and is making regular payments. Moreover, she is currently living in a damp, moldy apartment with bad electrical connections and her children are ill as a result. She has to maintain that apartment from her own funds. According to the social worker, her client has been groundlessly disadvantaged by the handling of her request to rent a different apartment.

The case was finally resolved by the woman renting an apartment in another town. Nevertheless, the ombudsman has stated that the municipality most probably discriminated against the woman on the basis of her motherhood and indirectly because of her ethnic origin. Varvařovský did allow that municipalities must make sure prospective tenants will be able to pay rent. However, in his view it is inappropriate to require that prospective tenants show an open-ended work contract given the current situation on the labor market. He recommended the municipality refine its rules for renting its apartments.