VENICE, Fla. — A Florida condominium association says it won’t allow gay or unmarried heterosexual couples to purchase a home in its development, stating that couples “living in sin” are prohibited from owning any property at the upscale complex.
And, despite the backlash, the new guidelines are legal in Florida.
The new restrictions, which came into effect this summer at the Casa Di Amici Condo in Venice, Fla., allow only married or single people to purchase or rent in the 160-unit complex, reported WTSP-TV.
The only exemption applies to blood relatives living together.
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Julia Nowak, a gay realtor who rents her condo to her parents, is outraged by the new restrictions, which she points out could also exclude “two elderly people who want to save on their social security, so they don’t get married.”
“It’s anti-gay,” said Nowak. “And it’s discrimination against anyone who’s not married but wants to buy a place together.”
While the City of Venice has a domestic partnership ordinance that might have allowed Nowak to fight the new policy, the condos with a Venice mailing address are actually in unincorporated Sarasota County, which doesn’t have a human rights ordinance.
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Florida state law does not outlaw discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity.
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