The Office of the Attorney General (OAG) has recently announced a significant settlement in the ongoing battle against housing voucher abuse. Petra Management Group, along with associated entities and manager Rashid Salem, has been directed to pay $700,000 and to overhaul its practices. This comes after a lawsuit accused them of effectively blocking affordable housing options for lower-income Washington D.C. residents by manipulating the housing voucher system.
According to the OAG’s January lawsuit, Petra had been evading the District’s rent control requirements designed to safeguard affordable housing for those not benefiting from vouchers or other subsidies. Their strategy was to selectively rent to voucher recipients at inflated, government-subsidized rates. To finally resolve this abusive conduct, Petra has agreed to not only compensate with significant monetary penalties but also to publicly advertise available apartments at lawful rates, ensure fair housing training for staff, and submit to three years of OAG’s compliance monitoring, according to an Office of the Attorney General for the District of Columbia official statement.
Beth Mellen, Assistant Deputy Attorney General and Senior Counsel for Housing Protection and Affordability, expressed a strong stance against such discriminatory practices, stating, “Too many DC residents are already struggling to find an affordable place to live, and the Office of the Attorney General will not tolerate source of income-based housing discrimination that further limits affordable housing options.” This sentiment was echoed by Councilmember Janeese Lewis George, who hailed the settlement a win for tenants across Ward 4 and DC who suffered under Petra’s profit-driven tactics…