Final answer:
The owner's refusal to rent to tenants with children violates the Fair Housing Act of 1968, which prohibits discrimination based on familial status. Such practices are a form of housing discrimination alongside redlining and mortgage discrimination, which have historically and currently affect minorities' access to quality housing and communities.
Step-by-step explanation:
The owner who is refusing to rent units to tenants with children due to concerns about noise and damage is in violation of fair housing laws, specifically the Fair Housing Act of 1968. This act, also known as the Civil Rights Act of 1968, outlawed discrimination in housing based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. Later amendments to the act added protections based on familial status, which includes families with children, and disability. Refusing to rent to families with children falls under this prohibited discrimination.
Instances of housing discrimination have been legally challenged over the years. Practices like redlining, the denial of services either directly or through selectively raising prices, and mortgage discrimination, where loans are denied or made excessively costly based on race or ethnicity, have been addressed under this act. While such overt discrimination has decreased, studies suggest that more subtle forms continue, impacting people's abilities to live in communities with better opportunities and schooling.
Furthermore, while the Civil Rights Act of 1964 does not directly address housing, it set a precedent for anti-discrimination laws in business practices and public accommodations, which can overlap with real estate debates. Despite ongoing controversies regarding the tensions between religious freedom and non-discrimination, the Fair Housing Act remains a key legal standard in preventing housing discrimination.