Is “credit check required” OK in a real estate listing?

Why

"Credit check required", "references required", "Section 8 accepted" and "Equal Housing Opportunity" are on the NYPA/CRMLS acceptable lists.

What the tag means

OK means a cited source treats it as acceptable. Any alternative shown is a house-style preference some offices or MLSs ask for, not a legal requirement.

Check your own wording

Paste a sentence or your whole listing. It runs ListingLint's real rule engine in your browser, and nothing is uploaded. credit check required

No Fair Housing flags in this text. That's a word check, not a legal review.

Allowed terms we recognized

• OK “credit check required”

  "Credit check required", "references required", "Section 8 accepted" and "Equal Housing Opportunity" are on the NYPA/CRMLS acceptable lists.

A word check, not a legal review. Open the full checker for fixes, the fact lock and the MLS character count.

What the law covers here

Federal law names seven classes. Many states and cities add more, such as source of income or marital status, and some add military status or criminal history. A phrase that's fine under federal law can still break a local ordinance, so check the rules where the property is.

• Fair Housing Act, 42 U.S.C. § 3604(c)

Sources

• Fair Housing Advertising Word and Phrase List (New York Press Assn.; source: Oklahoma Press Assn.)
• CRMLS Fair Housing Word & Phrase List (Apr. 2021)

Related phrases

• no section 8 Avoid
• pay stubs required Caution
• verifiable income Depends
• married only Avoid
• no military Avoid
• no criminal records Caution
• no students Caution
• low income people Caution

All state / local classes phrases on one page · The 12-check listing checklist

Not legal advice. Word lists can't judge context, and laws differ by state and city, with some protecting more classes than federal law does. If you're unsure about a listing, ask your broker or a fair housing attorney. Rule ok-credit-check, ListingLint rules v2026.10.2.