Some San Antonio Apartments Banning Tattoos

[Jenn! 918]

It's against the law for landlords to discriminate based on the color of a person's skin. But can they reject you because of what's on your skin? Some San Antonio apartment complexes are refusing to rent to people with tattoos and body piercings. News 4 WOAI Trouble Shooter Jaie Avila investigates the case of one couple who says that policy is unfair.

Gilbert Carrillo thinks tattoos are an artform. He's been to tattoo conventions and one of his tattoos was featured in a magazine. "Ever since I was 18, to now, 25, bit by bit, covering up here, covering up there."

But last month, Carrillo's tattoos kept him and his wife, Melissa, from moving into an apartment complex called the Villas at Medical Center. "We liked the apartment, we brought them a check for the deposit and a check for the application fee," says Melissa.

Later, Gilbert went by to look at the apartment wearing a short sleeve shirt. The next day, the Carrillos were told they didn't qualify to live there, because the tattoos on Gilbert's arms violated the policy on personal appearance.

"For them to be so judgmental on a person's appearance, and for them to judge someone based on them having a tattoo is just ridiculous, you know," says Melissa.

The Carrillos were also upset that the manager refused to refund their full $70 application fee. But mostly, they feel the policy is discriminatory.

So the Trouble Shooters went to the Villas at Medical Center to hear their side of it.

The manager, Daisy Salazar, said she wasn't allowed to talk to us. "We have our own lawyers, I can't speak to anyone," said Salazar.

But we didn't give up. We contacted one of the owners of the apartments: A southern California doctor named Edward Frankel.

Frankel e-mailed us a statement saying his apartment complexes do, in fact, "reject prospective tenants who have... tattoos exposed on the neck, head, hands and wrists, or large tattoos that cover over 40% of the lower or upper arm."

Frankel says, "We do not discriminate. The above applies to persons of any race, color, gender, etc."

Frankel, and his partners, have purchased numerous upscale apartment complexes in San Antonio and Dallas, where they've also banned pierced eyebrows and tongues. Tenants can't have more than one nose piercing, or more than five earrings.

Local fair housing officials say the rules may be unusual, but they are not illegal.

"Refusing to rent to somebody because they have tattoos may be unfair, but it's not discrimination under the fair housing act, unless the tattoos are specific to the person's religion or national origin," says Sandy Tamez of the San Antonio Fair Housing Council.

After the Trouble Shooters started looking into the case, the apartment complex refunded the Carrillos' full application fee.

But the couple is still angry that a landlord would consider body art to be the mark of a bad tenant.

Source

[almaty 19]

hmmm.. interesting

[thesnowman 1]

I personally think it is crazy, I have two tattoos. One of the Scottish Lion Rampant on my upper arm (to remind me of home) and my sons name on my forearm. I also plan on getting more, and to think that I could be refused a place to rent because of them dumbfounds me.

However it is there houses and they can do whatever they want with it, just think they are missing out on a lot of prospective clients, even rich ones. Their loss I suppose.

[Jenn! 918]

I don't have any tattoos nor do I really care for them much personally, but I can't imagine thinking less of a person because they had tattoos. I swear some people are still stuck in the fifties.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

Usually they have a certain kind of person in mind when they come up with those laws (in this case - I'm guess gang-types), though their blanket nature makes them rather ridiculous ultimately.

I was surprised to see a sign up in a public restrooms at a CA community center saying "washing and shaving explicitly prohibited". In other words - "homeless people f*** off".

[Sheriff Uling 3]

Whoa! Hold the phone! There are in for a lawsuit! That's ####### in a hand basket...

[Jasman0717 9]

I can understand smoking but tattoos

[radsr2002 0]

suggestion

next time keep your shirt on until the lease is signed..... LOL

[Cheryl & Medo 3]

Tattoo's have been around for over 2000 years. And to think people are still being sterio typed by the way they look in the year 2007. I am a tattoo artist and have been for 17 years. I tattoo lawyers. teachers. workers from the health department. police men. And people from all sorts of life. When Medo gets here he will be a tattoo artist also. He has a degree in the arts. We also met in a tattoo chat room. If I was that couple I would hire a lawyer ASAP This smells of discrimination badly.

[eric&gen 0]

No one will never see my tattoo it is hidden out of sight in my shorts underneath my wee wee.

[Scott & Lai 12]

No one will never see my tattoo it is hidden out of sight in my shorts underneath my wee wee.

TMI

[Nancy2015 2]

I don't have any tattoos nor do I really care for them much personally, but I can't imagine thinking less of a person because they had tattoos. I swear some people are still stuck in the fifties.

I don't like tattoos and would never get one myself, but discriminationg agianst people who express themselves this way is terrible.

Stuck in the fifties is right.

[SqdnGuns 21]

Guess I'm screwed from renting there......... ..........11 tatt's and just got a fresh one in Thailand last week.

[trailmix 77]

What about people who rent places (houses or apartments) and don't allow children or pets.

I always thought that was really weird - 3 bdrm home, blah blah blah - no kids or pets. Like it's normal to not allow people who have children.

Or corner stores where they put a sign up - 'no more than 5 school children allowed at any time'. The kids line up at the door even though there is a sign saying you are basically all little criminals so we can only allow x number of you in at a time so we can watch you.

There is all kinds of discrimination out there that no one thinks twice about.

Edited September 26, 2007 by trailmix

[Caladan 19]

Legally they're probably in the right, but what a way to say 'we're such a bunch of tightasses we want to control how our tenants look.'