United States v. SSM Properties (S.D. Miss.)

On November 1, 2022, the court entered a consent decree in United States v. SSM Properties, LLC, et al. (S.D. Miss.).  The complaint, which was filed on November 11, 2020, alleged that the owners and manager of three apartment complexes in Pearl, Mississippi discriminated on the basis of race by steering Black testers toward one complex and falsely representing that the other two complexes did not have vacancies.  On August 3, 2022, the court granted the United States’ motion for summary judgment on liability, finding, as a matter of law, that the defendants violated the Fair Housing Act.  The consent decree requires the defendants to pay $110,000 in damages and attorneys’ fees and $13,000 in civil penalties; prohibits the manager-defendant from working at any residential rental properties; and requires the owner-defendants to hire an independent manager, implement nondiscriminatory standards and procedures, undergo fair housing training and provide periodic reports to the department.

Press Release (11/12/20)