HUD Handbook 4350.3 § 4-12
Affirmative Fair Housing Marketing (HUD Occupancy Handbook 4350.3 REV-1 CHG-4)
Operative Text
This paragraph describes affirmative fair housing marketing activities and
implementation of the Affirmative Fair Housing Marketing Plan (Form HUD-935.2A)
approved for the property. It also discusses compliance and requirements for updating
the Affirmative Fair Housing Marketing Plan.
A. Key Requirements
1. The marketing effort should attract a broad cross-section of the eligible
population without regard to race, color, religion, sex, disability, familial
status, or national origin.
2. Whenever additional applicants are needed to fill available units,
advertising must be carried out in accordance with the HUD-approved
Affirmative Fair Housing Marketing Plan, or, in cases where no Affirmative
Fair Housing Marketing Plan is required, marketing must be conducted in
an affirmative manner.
3. During compliance reviews, owners must be able to provide information
documenting their compliance with affirmative fair housing marketing
requirements and their approved plan.
B. Affirmative Fair Housing Marketing Plan
Owners must comply with the requirements of their HUD-approved Affirmative
Fair Housing Marketing Plan, which is designed to promote equal housing choice
for all prospective tenants regardless of race, color, religion, sex, disability,
familial status, or national origin.
1. The purpose of the plan is to ensure that eligible families of similar income
levels will have a similar range of housing opportunities.
2. The plan outlines marketing strategies the owner must use, including
special efforts to attract persons who are least likely to apply because of
such factors as the racial and ethnic composition of the neighborhood in
which the property is located. Marketing should also seek to reach
potential applicants outside the immediate neighborhood if marketing only
within the neighborhood would create a disparate impact against certain
classes (e.g., if the entire neighborhood includes no minorities).
3. Owners must monitor the results of the marketing effort and adjust their
marketing techniques as necessary.
4. Owners may not require local residency as a prerequisite for admission.
However, with HUD approval, owners may give preference to residents of
the municipality in which the property is located. HUD will approve the
use of local residency preferences only if such preferences are found to
be consistent with nondiscrimination and equal opportunity requirements
and the goals of the Affirmative Fair Housing Marketing Plan. See
paragraph 4-6 C.1 for more information about residency preferences.
5. HUD does not require subsidized multifamily projects built prior to
February 1972 to have an Affirmative Fair Housing Marketing Plan, unless
the property has been substantially rehabilitated subsequent to February
1972 or the plan is required by a housing assistance contract. However,
owners of such properties are required to affirmatively market their units
to those least likely to apply.
C. Special Marketing Requirements
1. All Section 8 units. Owners must target their marketing and outreach
activities to attract applicants with incomes below the very low-income
limit. Owners must also target their marketing and outreach activities to
attract applicants with incomes at or below the extremely low-income limit
to achieve the income targeting requirements (see paragraph 4-5).
2. New construction and substantial rehabilitation units NOT designed for
disabled or elderly persons (except previously HUD-owned properties).
Before marketing to other prospective tenants, owners must market to
nonelderly families, including those with disabilities, who are:
a. Least likely to apply as identified in the Affirmative Fair Housing
Marketing Plan; and
b. Expected to reside in the community because of their current or
planned employment.
3. Section 202 PRAC and Section 811 PRAC properties - Supportive
Housing for the Elderly and Supportive Housing for Persons with
Disabilities.
a. Owners must commence and continue diligent marketing activities
not later than 90 days before the anticipated date of availability of
the first unit or occupancy of the group home. Marketing activities
must include the provision of notices on the availability of housing
under the program to operators of temporary housing for the
homeless in the same housing market.
b. At the time of PRAC execution, the owner must submit to HUD a
list of leased and unleased assisted units (or, in the case of a
group home, leased and unleased residential spaces) with a
justification for the unleased units or residential spaces in order to
qualify for vacancy payments for these units or spaces.
D. Advertising
When a property is initially leased, or when available units cannot be filled from
applicants on a waiting list, or no waiting list exists; the owner must advertise to
attract eligible applicants in the market area who are least likely to apply.
Advertising must be directed to all potential applicants regardless of race, color,
religion, sex, disability, familial status, or national origin.
1. An affirmative marketing program must be in effect for each multifamily
project throughout the life of the mortgage. Such a program typically
involves publicizing the availability of housing opportunities to all persons,
regardless of race, color, religion, sex, disability, familial status, or
national origin, in the media most likely to be used by the applicants,
including minority publications or other minority outlets that are available
in the housing market area.
2. Owners must target advertising to groups other than the typical population
of the neighborhood in which the property is located, reaching out to
applicants who are least likely to apply because they are not the
predominant racial or ethnic group in the neighborhood.
3. All advertising must include either the HUD-approved Equal Housing
Opportunity logo, slogan, or statement. All advertising depicting persons
should depict members of all eligible protected classes including
individuals from both majority and minority groups.
4. The owner’s responsibility to market projects to those least likely to apply
includes marketing to the LEP population in the community.
E. Records
During compliance reviews, owners must be able to provide documentation that
marketing activities for the property have been consistent with affirmative fair
housing marketing requirements and the approved plan for the property. Useful
records for this purpose include copies of media and marketing materials,
records of marketing activities conducted, and documentation of any special
marketing activities conducted in accordance with the property’s plan.
F. Updating the Marketing Plan
1. The approved Affirmative Fair Housing Marketing Plan must be followed.
It is the owner’s blueprint for marketing activity.
2. Owners must review their Affirmative Fair Housing Marketing Plan every
five years or when the local Community Development jurisdiction’s
Consolidated Plan is updated.
3. When reviewing the plan, the owner should look at the current
demographics of the market area to determine if there have been
demographic changes in the population in terms of race, ethnicity,
religion, persons with disabilities and/or large families. The owner will
then determine if the population least likely to apply for the housing is still
the population identified in the Affirmative Fair Housing Marketing Plan,
whether current advertising sources still exist, whether the advertising
and publicity cited in the current Affirmative Fair Housing Marketing Plan
are still the most applicable or whether advertising sources should be
changed or expanded. Even if the demographics of the community have
not changed, the owner should determine if the outreach currently being
performed is reaching those it is intended to reach as measured by
project occupancy. If not, the Affirmative Fair Housing Marketing Plan
should be updated.
4. The revised plan must be submitted to HUD for approval. HUD or the
contract administrator will review whether affirmative marketing is actually
being performed in accordance with the Affirmative Fair Housing
Marketing Plan during an on-site monitoring review.
5. If based on their review the owner determines the Affirmative Fair
Housing Marketing Plan does not need to be revised, they should
maintain a file documenting what was reviewed, what was found as a
result of the review, and why no change is required. HUD or the contract
administrator may review this documentation during a monitoring review.
G. Fair Housing Poster
1. Owners must post and maintain the required Equal Housing Opportunity
poster.
a. Owners may obtain copies of the poster from their HUD Field
Office.
b. Owners may use a facsimile of the poster if the facsimile and
lettering are equivalent in size and legibility to the poster available
from HUD.
2. The Fair Housing Poster must be prominently displayed so it is readily
apparent to all persons seeking housing.HUD Handbook 4350.3 REV-1 CHG-4 § 4-12 establishes that federally assisted multifamily housing properties must actively market available units to attract a broad cross-section of eligible applicants, without regard to race, color, religion, sex, disability, familial status, or national origin. Owners are required to follow a HUD-approved Affirmative Fair Housing Marketing Plan (Form HUD-935.2A), which directs outreach specifically toward groups least likely to apply—including those outside the immediate neighborhood and limited English proficient populations. The plan must be reviewed at least every five years, updated when local demographic conditions warrant, and resubmitted to HUD for approval; compliance documentation and an Equal Housing Opportunity poster must also be maintained on-site.
Plain English — not legal advice.
Under § 4-12 of HUD Handbook 4350.3 REV-1 CHG-4, compliant operators maintain an active, HUD-approved Affirmative Fair Housing Marketing Plan and follow it as the primary blueprint for all leasing outreach. This typically means advertising in minority publications and other outlets likely to reach underrepresented groups, including LEP populations, using the HUD Equal Housing Opportunity logo in all advertising, and monitoring occupancy data to assess whether outreach is actually reaching its intended audiences. Operators also keep thorough records of all marketing activities—copies of media materials, logs of outreach efforts, and documentation of any special campaigns—so that this evidence is readily available during HUD or contract administrator compliance reviews.
General guidance for property managers — not legal advice for your specific situation. Consult an attorney for advice on your case.
Section 4-12 of HUD Handbook 4350.3 REV-1 CHG-4 establishes that prospective tenants at federally assisted multifamily properties have the right to be considered for housing without regard to race, color, religion, sex, disability, familial status, or national origin, and that owners must actively reach out to groups historically least likely to apply. If you believe a property's marketing or admission practices have failed to meet these affirmative fair housing standards, you may file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which oversees compliance with this provision. Tenant-rights organizations and fair housing advocacy groups can also help you understand whether a potential violation has occurred and what general options may be available to you.
General guidance for tenants — not legal advice for your specific situation. Consult a tenant-rights organization or attorney for advice on your case.
Generated October 14, 2026 — auto-generated, not yet human-reviewed. See /transparency for methodology.
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