Fair housing & credit help · California
A fair shot at a home, and a fair shot at credit.
American Community Training Services (ACTS) is a nonprofit serving California that helps low-income families, voucher holders, and people rebuilding their lives find fair housing and get their credit back on track. We help you search for housing, fix errors on your credit report, build credit, and stand up to landlords, lenders, and employers who deny you illegally. Our help is free.
Not sure if what happened to you was legal? Use the 30-second check.
Search period
- Bedroom size
- 2 BR
- Applications sent
- 14
- Told “no vouchers”
- 6
- Denied for credit
- 3
Vouchers usually come with a 60-day search window. Every refusal costs time you may not get back.
Sound familiar?
What California voucher holders hear, and what the law says
We don’t take Section 8.
Illegal for most California landlords since 2020. So is a “No Section 8” ad.
Your credit score is too low.
With a voucher, you can offer other proof you’ll pay your share, like bank statements or benefit letters. The landlord must consider it.
You need income of three times the rent.
Income rules must be based on the part of the rent you pay, not the full amount.
Your background check came back.
Were you told in writing before they ran it? If not, the landlord or employer may have broken California law.
How we help
From voucher in hand to keys in hand
We work alongside you from the day you receive your voucher until you sign a lease, and we step in when a landlord says no.
Tell us what you need
Bedroom size, area, voucher deadline, accessibility needs, and anything that has gone wrong so far.
We search voucher-friendly homes
We look for owners who accept vouchers across California, including tax-credit communities.
Apply with support
We help with applications, alternative proof of payment when credit is an issue, and the Request for Tenancy Approval (HUD-52517).
Hold them accountable
We help you document a refusal or credit denial, file complaints before deadlines pass, and connect you with attorneys to pursue legal remedies.
Credit help
Better credit opens more doors
A low score or a mistake on your credit report can cost you an apartment, a job, or a fair interest rate. We work with you one-on-one, free of charge, to understand your reports and improve them.
Pull all three reports
You can get free reports from Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion every week at annualcreditreport.com. We go through them with you line by line.
Dispute what’s wrong
Accounts that aren’t yours, wrong balances, old debts, and paid accounts still shown as unpaid. Credit bureaus generally must investigate a dispute within 30 days. Since July 2025, California law generally keeps medical debt off credit reports.
Build positive history
Many California landlords must now offer to report your on-time rent to a credit bureau (Civil Code §1954.06). We help you use rent reporting, secured cards, and a simple budget to build a record that works for you.
Use it to get housed
When you apply, we help you show you can pay. If you have a voucher, landlords must consider proof other than a credit score, like bank statements or benefit letters.
ACTS never charges for credit help. Be careful with companies that charge upfront fees to “repair” your credit: no one can legally remove accurate, current information from your report, and you can dispute errors yourself for free.
Your rights in California
What landlords and lenders can’t do
California has some of the strongest protections for voucher holders in the country. Choose a topic.
California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act treats Section 8 and other housing assistance as protected “source of income.” Most landlords cannot refuse you because you have a voucher.
- Ads saying “No Section 8,” “no vouchers,” or “no programs” are not allowed.
- Minimum-income rules must be applied to the part of the rent you pay, not the full rent.
- Higher deposits, different lease terms, or steering voucher holders to certain units can also be discrimination.
- Refusing to fill out voucher paperwork or allow the housing authority inspection can be a refusal in disguise.
Where complaints go
California Civil Rights Department (CRD)
800-884-1684
File as soon as you can. The deadline is generally one year from the refusal.
Many voucher holders have thin or damaged credit. California law recognizes that the housing authority pays most of the rent, so a credit score alone shouldn’t shut you out.
- If you receive a government rent subsidy, a landlord who checks credit must give you the option to show other reasonable proof that you can pay your share instead.
- Proof can include government benefit records, pay stubs, or bank statements showing regular payments.
- If you offer that proof, the landlord must consider it. Denying you on credit without doing so may be illegal.
- Ask for the reason in writing if you are denied. Keep a copy of everything you submitted.
Where complaints go
California Civil Rights Department (CRD)
800-884-1684
If a credit report had errors, you can also dispute them with the credit bureau for free.
Applying for a loan, credit card, or other credit? Federal law says a lender cannot deny you or give you worse terms because some or all of your income comes from a public assistance program, including rental assistance.
- Lenders may still look at whether you can repay, but they can’t treat assistance income as less valid simply because of where it comes from.
- If you’re denied, the lender must tell you the reasons or tell you how to request them.
- Keep the denial letter. It is the most important piece of evidence.
Where complaints go
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB)
855-411-2372
California’s Investigative Consumer Reporting Agencies Act (ICRAA) sets strict rules for background checks that look into your character, reputation, personal characteristics, or way of living. It covers checks run by landlords and by employers.
- Jobs: before ordering the check, the employer must give you a clear written disclosure, in a document that contains only that disclosure, and get your written permission. § 1786.16(a)(2)
- Housing: within 3 days of requesting the check, the landlord must tell you in writing, including the name and address of the background check company. § 1786.16(a)(3)
- You must be offered a box to check to get a free copy of the report, and it must be sent within 3 business days. § 1786.16(b)(1)
- If you’re denied or charged more because of the report, they must tell you and name the company that made it. § 1786.40
A landlord, employer, or background check company that breaks these rules owes you $10,000 or your actual damages, whichever is greater, plus attorney’s fees. § 1786.50
Act within 2 years
A claim must be filed within two years of when you discovered the violation. § 1786.52
Keep any forms you signed, the report itself, and any denial letter or email.
- Tax-credit (LIHTC) properties cannot refuse an applicant because they hold a Housing Choice Voucher. Many “affordable” apartment communities are tax-credit properties.
- The Fair Housing Act bans housing discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, and familial status. A voucher or credit policy that targets or falls hardest on these groups can be challenged.
- People with disabilities can ask for reasonable accommodations, such as changes to a policy that blocks them from renting.
Where complaints go
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Fair Housing
1-800-669-9777
Tax-credit property refusals can also go to the California Tax Credit Allocation Committee.
30-second check
Was that allowed?
Tell us what happened
We’ll tell you whether it was likely illegal in California and what to do next. This is general information, not legal advice.
Penalties in California
Illegal denials can be costly for the people who make them
$4,000
Voucher and credit-check denials
Discrimination by a business, including a landlord, carries at least $4,000 per violation, or up to three times your actual damages. Civil Code § 52(a); Gov. Code § 12955(d)
$10,000
Background check violations, housing and jobs
No written notice, no disclosure, or no copy offered: $10,000 or your actual damages, whichever is greater. Civil Code § 1786.50
Depending on the case, remedies can also include:
- Money for your losses, such as moving costs, higher rent, lost wages, and emotional distress
- Punitive damages for willful violations Gov. Code § 12989.2; Civil Code § 1786.50(b)
- Attorney’s fees and court costs
- Orders requiring them to rent to you or change their policies
Who can be held responsible
ACTS helps you pursue legal remedies against any business that denies you housing, credit, or a job illegally.
Landlords, owners, and agents
Refusing vouchers, posting “No Section 8” ads, or setting full-rent income rules.
Property management and leasing companies
Companies hired to screen tenants and fill units are responsible for their own decisions.
Background check and screening companies
Reports prepared or delivered without the notices and copies California law requires.
Employers and staffing companies
Running background checks without a standalone written disclosure and your signed permission.
Lenders and creditors
Denying loans or credit because your income comes from rental or public assistance.
Anyone else covered by law
Any person or business California law treats as denying housing or services illegally because of a voucher.
Get help
Tell us where you are in your search
Fill out the form that fits. Only your name and one way to reach you are required.
Request ready
Send this to our team
Copy the summary below and email it to us.
Resources
Agencies and tools
California Civil Rights Department
Complaints about voucher refusals and credit-check denials by landlords.
800-884-1684
HUD Fair Housing
Federal housing discrimination complaints.
1-800-669-9777
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
Complaints about lenders and credit card companies.
855-411-2372
Your housing authority
Ask about search-time extensions before your voucher expires, especially if you’ve faced refusals.
Free credit reports
Check and dispute errors on your credit report. annualcreditreport.com
HUD LIHTC database
Look up whether an apartment community is a tax-credit property. lihtc.huduser.gov
About ACTS
Fair housing and fair credit, for every Californian
American Community Training Services is a nonprofit serving California, working with low-income families, voucher holders, seniors, veterans, and people rebuilding after hard times. State law requires most landlords to accept vouchers, yet many still turn families away, post ads that shut them out, or deny them over credit scores that don’t reflect what they actually pay.
We help people search smarter, clean up and build their credit, apply with confidence, and pursue legal remedies when they are refused or denied illegally. We also train landlords and property managers on how the voucher program works and what California law requires.
ACTS provides housing search help, credit education, and help disputing credit report errors. We are not a law firm and do not give legal advice. When you pursue a legal claim, we connect you with attorneys who can represent you.