Arlington, TX Rental Property Rules: Source-of-Income Discrimination (2026)
Key Facts
- Voucher acceptance
- Optional
- State preemption
- TX §250.007
- Federal protected class
- Income not included
- Other discrimination banned
- Yes
Summary
Arlington does not prohibit landlord refusal of Section 8 housing-choice vouchers or other lawful sources of income. Texas Local Government Code §250.007 expressly preempts local source-of-income protections, leaving voucher acceptance entirely at landlord discretion citywide.
Sec. 250.007. REGULATION OF RENTAL OR LEASING OF HOUSING ACCOMMODATIONS. (a) Except as provided by this section, a municipality or county may not adopt or enforce an ordinance or regulation that prohibits an owner, lessee, sublessee, assignee, managing agent, or other person having the right to lease, sublease, or rent a housing accommodation from refusing to lease or rent the housing accommodation to a person because the person's lawful source of income to pay rent includes funding from a federal housing assistance program. (b) This section does not affect an ordinance or regulation that prohibits the refusal to lease or rent a housing accommodation to a military veteran because of the veteran's lawful source of income to pay rent.
Full Breakdown
Texas SB 267 (2015) added Local Government Code §250.007 prohibiting cities and counties from requiring landlords to accept federal housing-choice vouchers or other government rental subsidies. Arlington therefore cannot adopt source-of-income protections covering voucher recipients, veterans assistance, or other subsidy programs. Landlords retain full discretion to reject voucher applicants on that basis alone. Federal Fair Housing Act protections still bar discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, familial status, national origin, and disability, but income source is not a federally protected class. Tarrant County Housing Assistance Office reports significant voucher turn-down rates citywide.
Violations & Fines
There is no penalty for refusing housing-choice vouchers in Arlington. Landlords who decline a voucher must still avoid discrimination on federally protected classes such as race, familial status, or disability.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can an Arlington landlord refuse my Section 8 voucher?
Are any income-based protections in place?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Arlington
Texas rules heatmap·Compare Arlington to another location·View the Texas rental property rules overview
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Source-of-Income Discrimination in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Tarrant County handle source-of-income discrimination.