A ‘vegan landlord’ has sparked controversy after he banned potential tenants from cooking meat or fish in their apartment building.
Earlier this month, the homeowner put two apartments up for rent in their townhouse in Fort Greene, Brooklyn.
The one-bedroom apartments were put on the rental market for $4,500 and $5,750 per month, respectively. New York Times reports.
The apartment listing, which has since been removed, describes how the “wonderful vegan landlord” asks their new tenants to respect the “no meat/fish” rule in their building.
Although the landlord said they were open to carnivores living on their property, they requested that they not cook meat or fish.
The vegan homeowner has put up two apartments for rent in their townhouse in Fort Greene, Brooklyn [stock photo]
At an open house over the weekend, real estate agent Andrea Kelly told a potential resident the reasoning behind the unusual clause.
She explained, “Not only is it vegetarian, but the owner lives in the building and doesn’t want the smell of cooked meat wafting up.”
After facing backlash from potential tenants, the ad was removed from the Douglas Elliman website and then reposted without any mention of the cooking rule.
However, the landlord’s ex-husband – who is also a vegan – has insisted it is ‘not discrimination’.
They said, “You have to fit in the building.”
Since the couple bought the property in 2007, they have never rented out the apartments to meat eaters.
New York’s human rights law states that landlords may not exclude potential tenants based on their race, gender, age, sexual orientation, religion, job, or family status.
However, it is legal for the landlords to refuse to rent their property to carnivores – and many in the city also ban smokers.
In 2018, a Manchester landlord was charged with ‘discrimination’ after he banned vegans from applying to live in his spare room. The full ad list with the line ***IF YOU’RE VEGAN, DON’T BOTHER*** in capital letters
While attending the open house, Tessa Ruben and partner Darian Ghassemi said they would consider making an offer on the apartment as they regularly order take-out.
But upon reflection, Tessa said, “What makes me more nervous than the rule itself is knowing there’s someone upstairs to make sure you’re following it.”
In 2018, a Manchester landlord was charged with ‘discrimination’ after he banned vegans from applying to live in his spare room.
The live-in landlord, listed as “Alex” in the SpareRoom ad that went live Monday, warned viewers in all caps “if you’re vegan, don’t bother” before going on to list other requirements.
His duplex apartment, located in Manchester’s Northern Quarter, had a spacious lounge, bathroom and two bedrooms for £700 a month.
A spokesperson for The Vegan Society said at the time: ‘While we can understand the landlord’s aim was for the ad to be humorous, we don’t quite understand why he would be opposed to living with a vegan.
It’s worth noting that if he were renting out an entire house, discrimination wouldn’t be appropriate, but there is an exception in certain situations, such as if you’re a live-in landlord.
It’s a known fact that many vegans are good cooks who pay attention to what goes into their meals.
Vegans also often like to cook for their housemates, which makes us think Alex might reconsider his decision to ban them from his house.