Over-55 Communities

The construction of new developments for older residents, also known as Over-55 Communities, may not exactly be in compliance with state and federal law, according to one state official.

Raymond Cartwright, Director, Housing and Commercial Property Division for the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission, said Congress in 1988 passed an amendment to the federal Fair Housing Act prohibiting those who develop or manage housing projects from discriminating against families with children.

The amendment, however, contained a clause that grandfathered developments that already excluded children from the rule – but only if such housing meets state and federal age criteria.

“To be exempt from the clause, at least 80 percent of households must have at least one person 55 and older,” Cartwright said. 

Cartwright added that legal questions remain over whether the exemption should extend to Over-55 Communities built after 1989.

“There is no clear judicial precedence for these types of developments,” Cartwright said. “There is a real gray area because a case has not successfully been litigated one way or another.”

The Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission is the state agency responsible for enforcing laws against discrimination.