Balvage

We hold that a residential community that has continuously operated as a retirement community for persons age 55 or older can qualify for the housing for older persons exemption from the Fair Housing Act’s prohibition on familial status discrimination by establishing that it currently satisfies the exemption’s three statutory and regulatory criteria at the time of the *769 alleged violation, even if the community-enforced age restrictions when it first achieved compliance with the exemption’s age verification requirement.

Background

I.

In 1988, Congress amended the Fair Housing Act (FHA) and prohibited housing discrimination on account of familial status. See Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988 (FHAA), Pub.L. No. 100-430, 102 Stat. 1619. As amended by the FHAA, the FHA broadly prohibits discrimination against families with children in connection with the sale and rental of housing. See 42 U.S.C. §§ 3604 (a)-(e), 3605, 3606, 3617, 3631.

At the same time, Congress recognized the effect these prohibitions would have on retirement communities and created exemptions in the FHA for qualified “housing for older persons.” Id. § 3607(b). The housing for older persons…