Final answer:
A licensee must select homes to show a minority client as they would for any other prospective customer, without making assumptions based on race or ethnicity. Discriminatory behaviors like steering are unethical and realtors must follow anti-discriminatory laws to provide equal service.
Step-by-step explanation:
If a minority does not ask to be shown homes located in an all-white neighborhood, a licensee must select homes for showing as he would for any other prospective customer. It is imperative that real estate professionals abide by anti-discriminatory laws and provide equal service to all clients, regardless of race or ethnicity. Practices such as steering, where a realtor might direct a buyer to homes in certain ethnic neighborhoods, or making assumptions about where a person might want to live based on their race, are considered discriminatory and unethical.
Housing discrimination has a long history in the United States, with various practices being used to maintain housing segregation. Even after the Supreme Court found restrictive covenants unconstitutional, other methods such as mortgage discrimination and real estate practices continued to limit the options for minority homebuyers. Studies have shown that blacks and other minorities are often shown fewer homes or subjected to more stringent credit checks, which underscores the importance of equitable treatment by licensees in the real estate market.