Fort Dodge:

Credit Employment Housing Total
Race Familial Status
Tests Conducted 3 3 4 43 53
Different Treatment 0 0 1 3 4

Housing:

Test 1

The testers met with different managers. The African American tester was given a listing of members of the Fort Dodge Landlord Association and was told, "[y]ou need to look at a lot of other properties. That way, you're gonna be happy when you end up settling." The white tester was not told to look at other properties.

 

Familial Status:

Test 1

The owners advertised their one bedroom apartment as "Ideal for single person". The tester posed as a single parent with one child. During the call the owner stated,

 

"Right, the only reason I ask that is my mother in-law-lives on the main floor of this house and this is the upstairs apartment. And we have several buildings in town that we do have kids in. But she's 84 and we have found, for one thing this is just a large one bedroom. You know and we have found through the years. We've tried it and it seems like she ends up constantly complaining either, you know, she hears more traffic upstairs. And it isn't that I don't want kids there because we have children ourselves but it's just the idea. It doesn't always work. So I just, I know that you know unless it was somebody that. We've had some couples sometimes. That you know, she'll be pregnant when they move in and then about a year after they usually end up moving out. Not because of her downstairs but just because they want something you know that isn't upstairs. So I mean I can give the information but I doubt if I would probably rent it just because of that."

 

Test 2

The tester posed as a married person with two kids and inquired about a two bedroom apartment. The manager told the tester, "It's probably not big enough for that big a family." The owner did not give the size of the unit but did state, "There isn't a big dining area or anything for a family."

 

Test 3

The tester posed as a single parent with two sons and asked about a two bedroom unit. The manger told the tester, "Boys, it's probably would be pretty tight; for two or three people. [silence] You could. I'd be glad to take a look at it if you'd like to but, ah, ah, I think it'd be pretty tight."

 

A second tester posed as a single parent with two daughters and also asked about the two bedroom unit. The manager told the tester the unit had, "one great big bedroom" which was "14 by 18 or something like that." The manager did not give the dimensions of the second bedroom. The manager told the tester, "it might be pretty tight [for herself and two daughters]." The manager suggested that the tester call his uncle about a duplex instead of his unit.

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