If your application to rent an apartment is rejected, you have a right to know why. It is illegal for a landlord to refuse your rental application for discriminatory reasons. Federal law prohibits discrimination on the basis of:

1. Race
2. Color
3. Religion
4. National origin
5. Sex
6. Age
7. Familial status (including not allowing children, discrimination against pregnant women)
8. Physical disability
9. Mental disability (including alcoholism and past drug addiction)

States and many cities have similar housing laws, and yours may prohibit other kinds of discrimination, including:

• Marital status
• Sexual orientation

Federal housing law prohibits a variety of discriminatory conduct:

1. Advertising cannot contain any statement indicating a preference or limitation based on any of the protected classes listed above.

2. The landlord may not make any similar implication or statement.

3. A landlord cannot say that an apartment is not available when in fact it is available.

4. A landlord cannot use a different set of rules for assessing applicants belonging to a protected class.

5. A landlord cannot refuse to rent to persons in a protected class.

6. A landlord cannot provide different services or facilities to tenants in a protected class or require a larger deposit, or treat late rental payments differently.

7. A landlord cannot end a tenancy for a discriminatory reason.

8. A landlord cannot harass you.

Note: The federal housing statutes do not apply to all rental property. The main exceptions are owner-occupied buildings with four or fewer rental units (e.g., a duplex), housing offered by religious groups or private organizations for their members, housing designated for senior citizens, and single-family housing being rented without discriminatory advertising or a real estate broker.

If you were rejected because the landlord received negative information about you, including information from previous landlords, your employer, your bank or other third parties, you have a right to know why.

Under the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act a landlord has to tell you if the rejection was based on negative credit information that came from a source other than your credit report.

• The federal Fair Credit Reporting Act also requires a landlord to tell you that, during the sixty days after he or she informs you that there was negative credit information, you may submit a written request for disclosure of the negative information.
• After receiving your request for disclosure of the negative information, the landlord must tell you "the nature of the information," within a "reasonable time." The law does not indicate how much detail the landlord must give you.

You have a right to "habitable" premises. This is a fancy way of saying the apartment or house you are renting is fit to be lived in. Don't compromise on this right. You have a right not to live in a hovel. Most states do not let a landlord put language in the lease stating that you "waive" the right (that is, give it up). The following conditions could make premises "uninhabitable."

• Unsafe conditions, such as holes in the floor, plaster coming down from the ceiling, bad wiring, and the like.
• Gross infestation of vermin such as cockroaches or mice.

Under federal law, rental housing must be free of lead-based paint. It is more typical in older buildings, and up to 75 percent of the housing stock is still affected by it. No matter how old or new the premises are, watch for chipping paint, peeling paint, flaking paint, and paint dust.