Kandre Covington-Smith and Andre Smith could be reimbursed for their moving costs as a result of the complaint.For about seven years, Kandre Covington-Smith and Andre Smith paid rent to their landlord by the fifth of every month without incurring any late fees. Generally, the landlord would start charging late fees if the rent wasn’t paid in full by the second. But their landlord made an exception because Covington-Smith would be relying on Supplemental Security Income to pay the rent.
Andre Smith is also a person with a disability defined by the Fair Housing Act. Since 2013, he’s had several physical and mental impairments, such as diabetes, renal failure and high blood pressure. All of these things affected his ability to work and walk. When she was negotiating the lease in June 2012, Covington-Smith requested an accommodation from the leasing agent. She asked if she could pay the rent on the fifth of the month without incurring any late fees. Covington-Smith said this was necessary because of her reliance on SSI payments. She also asked if she could drop off the rent payment at a closer location because of the difficulties in traveling to Dallas. These accommodations were granted when Covington-Smith signed the lease.
Just before noon that day, she sent a message through the online portal explaining the issue. “I have paid on the fifth of every month for the past seven years due to the fact that I receive supplemental income,” Covington-Smith wrote. “This was known up front and has never been an issue.” Three days later, the Smiths got a notice saying their lease wouldn’t be renewable after August 31, 2019. Covington-Smith tried to arrange a meeting with Matalone about the lease termination but was never able to. On July 10, 2019, she filed a housing discrimination complaint with HUD.