Apartment Blog

“Baby boomers aren’t technology Luddites. More than 60 % of them consume socially created content. You’ll find them leaving their opinions on Web sites and joining social networks.”
- Jeremiah K. Owyang (@jowyang), researcher with Forrester Research

There is this perception that adults over 50 only dabble on the Internet, but research is finding that they are spending more time online and interacting in robust social networking communities. Baby boomers using social networking sites such as Facebook™, MySpace™, LinkedIn®, Twitter and YouTube™ are not as uncommon as you may think.

According to The Pew Internet and American Life Project, boomers now account for 35% of all Americans online. A consumer survey of U.S. consumers, from the NPD group, Inc., a leading provider of reliable consumer research, shows that 61% of baby boomer Internet users (age 44 to 61) had visited sites that offer streaming or downloadable video, while 41% had visited social networks.

Baby boomers are finding social networking sites appealing for the same reasons most people do- to stay in touch with people. They are interested in reconnecting with old friends and classmates whom they haven’t talked to in more than 30 years. They enjoy sharing photos with family and friends and staying connected to their children and grandchildren. High school and college reunions are also being organized via Facebook. Nielsen Reports that moms (aged 40-50 with 3+ children) are heavy online shoppers who stay connected via social networking more so than mom’s 39-54. Some are even replacing e-mail with social networking sites for staying in touch with people on an ongoing basis.  In addition to sites like Facebook, MySpace and LinkedIn, they are also using boomer-specific sites like eons.com, boommj.com, boomertowne.com and the aarp.org social network. 
According to Facebook, women over 55 remain the fastest growing group on the site, and growth among the teen and college-age set has been relatively paltry. In absolute numbers there are now even slightly more members between the ages of 45 and 65 than there are 13-to 17-year-olds. Analytics company iStrategyLabs has examined the demographics stats from Facebook’s Social Ads platform, and they have found staggering results. Interestingly, they found that the number of users aged 25-34 has grown 60.8%; the number of users aged 35 to 54 has grown 190.2%, while the number of users older than 55 years has grown a tremendous 513.7%.

Baby boomers are making themselves known in the social media space of the online world. Marketers who neglect to speak to them in the language they are now adapting to will miss out on a rewarding opportunity!

Pick up any magazine within the multi-family housing industry or attend an educational conference, and it is likely you will find something about fair housing.  This issue is important to our industry for many reasons, including the dollar impact of not being in compliance with the fair housing laws. If you are charged with discrimination, the defense costs are high, not to mention perhaps having to pay to either settle the case or satisfy a judgment.  You have protected your business and yourself from the ramifications of a fire, a slip-and-fall, or the myriad of other events that create liability for you as a landlord.  But what about fair housing insurance coverage?  Do you have it?  Do you not have it?  Do you know?  Do you really need it?  Do you care (probably, since you are reading this article)?  Is there really any such thing? 

Yes, there is coverage available. But it is up to you to find it, evaluate it, and make good business decisions regarding your needs. This article won’t give you all the answers, and will most likely raise more questions for you, but it is a good starting point for you to dialogue with your insurance agent or carrier.  So, here goes…

The first step is to see if you have coverage:

1. Keep in mind that your General Liability and Directors & Officers policies will likely not provide you with fair housing protection.  Personal Liability policies may (or may not!) provide coverage, but Professional Liability will often do so.
2. Check the AM Best’s rating (FSR - Financial Strength Rating) for your carrier’s ability to meet its obligations to you as a policyholder.
3. Discuss whether the carrier is “admitted” or “non-admitted/unauthorized” in the state or states in which you have properties and do business.
4. Next, open up a discussion with your agent/carrier about “Discrimination Coverage” or “Tenant Discrimination Liability Insurance.” The term “fair housing insurance” is not generally used in the insurance industry.

Now, let’s say that your agent/carrier assures you that you have the coverage or that you will be able to buy it. You’re all set now, right?  No, not at all.  As a smart business person you need to know what it is that you have bought or will buy.  And what you think you “see” is not necessarily what you might actually “get.”  You need to know:

1. Are you covered for intentional acts of discrimination?
2. Are you covered for punitive damages? There have been fair housing cases with punitive damages in excess of a million dollars, and one non-landlord fair housing case with punitive damages awarded at one hundred million dollars (that’s $100,000,000 and not a typo!).
3. Are you covered for civil penalties, emotional distress, compensatory damages, legal fees and settlements?
4. There are so many people for whose acts you are responsible.  Are you covered for the issues created not just by your regular employees, but also part-time, temporary, and leased employees, as well as volunteers?  What about issues created by residents, or your contractors and vendors?
5. Are you only covered during the leasing/application process?  What about coverage as relates to residents during their tenancy with you?  (In fact, most complaints are filed by current residents for harassment, evictions, different terms and conditions of their leases, and denial of requests for disability accommodation.)
6. Are you covered for groundless or false claims?  Defending these can cost thousands of dollars!
7. Are you only covered for actual lawsuits?  What about formal complaints made to HUD?  What about an informal claim made to you?  Keep in mind that you likely have a responsibility to notify your carrier even when someone just mentions a fair housing issue to you.  What is the time frame for notification?  And what can it cost you for failure or delay in notification…you may invalidate the coverage entirely!
8. Are you covered for prior acts, those which may have occurred before your policy went into effect?
9. Can you choose your own attorney?  The answer is “not always” and this can be to your detriment.  Attorneys who are familiar with fair housing complaints, the various enforcing agencies and investigators, can often get a situation handled quickly and resolve it efficiently because of their expertise.  A carrier’s attorney may not be able to do that and can run up hours of legal fees while trying to learn about this specialized area of the law.
10. Will the carrier pay up front, as you accrue expenses, before the case concludes?  Keep in mind that fair housing cases (and their costs) can, and do, go on for years and years.  Your carrier may give you a “Reservation of Rights Letter” - they’ll pay you now, but if the event turns out to be non-insurable at its conclusion (perhaps for intentional discrimination), then you will be required to give the money back and pay your own judgment to boot!
11. Who controls a possible settlement; you or the carrier?  Most cases are settled, and few actually make it into an administrative or federal district courtroom.
12. Is there a “hammer clause” regarding settlement?  If you refuse to agree to a settlement offer and insist on going to court, but then lose more than you could have settled for, guess who pays the difference?  (Hint- if there is a hammer clause, it won’t be your carrier who pays.)
13. Will a settlement affect your tax credit properties?  If you are found to have discriminated, you bet. If you settle and thus “admit” liability or lose in a lawsuit, you stand a good chance of losing your tax credit status.

A fire can occur at your community, someone can slip and fall.  There could be wind damage, hail damage, a tragic drowning in your pool.  You have likely protected yourself from these possibilities with insurance.   But be sure that you have done what you can to also protect yourself from the wrongful denial of a reasonable modification or accommodation request; sexual harassment or harassment based on protected class status; eviction or differential treatment because of protected class status; saying the wrong thing; treating applicants differently; linguistically profiling on the telephone; having community rules that unreasonably target children; automatically evicting the mentally disabled; not allowing assistance animals in pet-free properties; failing to have accessible housing where required or failing to allow modifications for the disabled.  These are the most common bases for fair housing complaints.

Make smart business decisions.  You may be disinclined to pay the premiums for tenant discrimination insurance yet just a few hours work on a fair housing issue may result in legal fees that are as high as the premium for coverage would have been.  Know what you are buying. Hopefully the ideas shared above will help you evaluate that. And consider this closing message from this trio of authors…complying with fair housing law is the right thing to do and avoiding fair housing complaints in the first place is the best insurance of all. 

REQUIRED LANGUAGE FOR ALL REPRINTING OF THIS ARTICLE:  “Fair Housing Focus” is written by Nadeen Green, Senior Counsel with For Rent Media Solutions^TM, Anne Sadovsky, CSP, CAM, CAPS, RAM and DJ Ryan, Fair Housing Specialist, Kimball, Tirey & St. John, LLP.  The information contained in this article is not to be considered legal advice, and the authors and their companies strongly suggest that you consult with your own counsel as to any fair housing questions or problems you may have.

Be sure to check out After 55 Housing & Resource Guide during a paid advertising program which will be featured on Life and Leisure Television.   To view the segments’ airing schedule, click here.

Placement on Life and Leisure, which is a part of the Bravo Network, will expose After 55 to a vast audience, including:

• 70 million cable households nationwide
• Millions on DirecTV & Dish Network
• 2 million potential television households throughout Canada, via DIRECTV and the Dish Network
• 75 million Internet and news media users
  • Video On-Demand
  • LifeAndLeisureTV.com Website
  • iTunes/Podcasting and other Radio Venues
  • YouTube, howstuffworks and 12 other Video Venues  

With several housing options available for Baby Boomers and beyond, After 55 Housing and Resource Guide offers a comprehensive and educational publication that represents a multitude of communities nationwide together with companies providing products and services specific to fit the needs of the After 55 audience.    

According to PreRetirement Resources Group, Baby Boomers are turning 50, at an astonishing rate of one every 7 to 10 seconds. That’s more than 12,000 each day and more than four million a year. With that being said, the housing industry has responded to the needs of this generation and their multi faceted preferences. With several housing options available for Baby Boomers and beyond, After 55^TM Housing and Resource Guide offers a comprehensive educational publication representing a multitude of communities nationwide together with companies providing products and services specific to your needs.  After 55 Housing and Resource Guide powers SeniorOutlook.com^TM, which also offers information on moving services, insurance and healthcare.

Outdated stereotypes have portrayed people over age 50 as those slowing down in life, going through the empty-nest syndrome, and so on.  On the contrary, Baby Boomers view turning 50 as beginning a new life.  More and more, adults over 50 are starting second and even third careers, developing new hobbies, and remarrying. 

It is important to note that Baby Boomers account for 50% of all U.S. discretionary income and 65% of the average household worth.¹   By the year 2015, about 45% of the U.S. adult population will be 50 or better.²   With this in mind, marketers should acknowledge the buying power that Baby Boomers have.  This generation accounts for $1.5 trillion in discretionary spending³, making it virtually impossible for them to be ignored as consumers.   Research shows that 34% of Boomers live in households with annual incomes of $75,000, versus only 31% of non-Boomers, affirming that Baby Boomers are more affluent than non-Boomer consumers.

The online market is one of great importance when it comes to the discussion of marketing to the Baby Boomer population.  “Wired Seniors” as they are sometimes called, are the fastest growing demographic group online.⁴ In fact, SeniorOutlook.com was recently recognized as one of the “Most Useful Sites” on the Web for 50 plus adults by PreRetirementLife.com.  It has also been proven that Baby Boomers research products online more often than other groups.⁵ For instance, Boomers purchase products or services online 3% more than non-Boomers. ⁵ Boomers outnumber non-Boomers who research products and services online by 6%.⁵ Nearly 20% of online Boomers utilize social networking sites as well as online chat and IM programs.⁵ 

The Baby Boomer generation will only continue to evolve and break away from the traditional mold of how Americans over 50 live.  Marketers will need to develop new tactics and strategies to cater to this massive demographic.  The Boomer generation holds America’s buying power in the palm of its hand - a potential gold mine for marketers everywhere.

Source: ¹ Deloitte Touche, ² After 50 Marketing, LLC, ³ U.S. Census Bureau, ⁴ Pew/Internet, ⁵ Jupiter Research