Recorder's Office
Discriminatory housing
What is Housing Discrimination?
Federal housing discrimination is discrimination on renting or buying a property based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex (including gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, and sexual harassment), familial status and disability.
Homeowners can bring a notarized statement to the Salt Lake County Recorder’s office and have it filed with their property records, free of charge, explicitly asserting the discriminatory portions are void.
Photo courtesy of Kristin Murphy, Deseret News
Salt Lake County residents can use this template form (Restrictive Covenant Amendments) to renounce a racial covenant per HB 374. Free of charge.
This document does not replace or delete recorded documents. They are recorded in the public record with reference to the incorrect document.
The Supreme Court made covenants unenforceable in 1948.
Congress banned these racial restrictions as part of the Fair Housing Act of 1968.
"Any provision in a previously recorded written instrument that expresses any preference, limitation, or discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, familial status, source of income, disability, sexual orientation, or gender identity is void under Utah Code Section 57-21-6.1."
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Contact Property Watch
Renouncing Discriminatory Housing Practices
Not sure if your home has a discriminatory housing practices covenant? The Salt Lake County Recorder's Office can help you find out. Use one of the 3 options below to find out.
Option 1
As part of an on-going project, the Salt Lake County Recorder's Office has identified racial covenants on all homes in the subdivisions listed below. This is not a complete list of subdivisions with racial covenants due to the on-going nature of the project. This list will be updated weekly. If you live in, or are buying, a home in one of these subdivisions, then your home has a racial covenant.
- Belview Gardens Subdivision
- Canyon View
- Colonial Hills
- East Millcreek Heights
- Hollywood Gardens
- Mountair Acres Addition # 2
- Mountair Acres Addition # 3
- Mountair Acres Addition # 4
- Progress Heights 2nd Addition
- St Mary Hills Plat A
- St Mary Hills Plat B
- St Mary Hills Plat D
- Victory Vlge
- Zion Park
If you would like to request a copy of the covenants recorded on one of these subdivisions, please email your request and the name of the subdivision to Property Watch, PropertyWatch@slco.org
Option 2
If your subdivision is not listed above, there is still a chance your home has a racial covenant because the research project is an on-going project. In this case, you can email your street address and/or parcel number to Property Watch, PropertyWatch@slco.org, and request a check for racial covenants. You will receive a reply within 1-3 business days. If a racial covenant is found on your property, the response will include a copy of the covenant.
Option 3
The Salt Lake County Recorder's Office is open Monday thru Friday from 8:00 am - 5:00 pm. During these hours, you can come to the Salt Lake County Recorder's office, and a member of the research team will help you determine if there is a racial covenant on your property.
The Salt Lake County Recorder's office is located at:
2001 S State St. N1-600
Salt Lake City, UT 84190
HB 374 from the Utah Legislature's 2021 General Session authorizes residents to record the following statement on their property, free of charge: "Any provision in a previously recorded written instrument that expresses any preference, limitation, or discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, familial status, source of income, disability, sexual orientation, or gender identity is void under Utah Code Section 57-21-6.1" State and local recording regulations must be followed including that all documents be signed and notarized and certain property identification information must be included.
Salt Lake County residents can use this template form to renounce a racial covenant per HB 374.
Follow the steps below to complete and record the form:
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On page 1, provide your name and mailing address in the upper left-hand corner.
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On page 3, follow the instructions on the form to enter your Tax Parcel Number and the Legal Description of your property.
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Sign and notarize the form--Please note forms must be signed and notarized before they are given to the Salt Lake County Recorder's office. The recorder's office does not provide notary services. Per Utah law, notaries will require you to present a valid form of photo ID (driver's license, state ID card, or passport.) Notaries can be found at most banks and credit unions, but they may charge a fee.
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The original completed, signed, and notarized form can be either mailed or brought in-person to the Salt Lake County Recorder's Office. The mailing address is the same as the physical address and is given below. If the recorder's office receives your document by mail, they will return it by mail to the address given in the upper left-hand corner of page 1 after recording is completed.
Salt Lake County Recorder
2001 S State St. N1-600
Salt Lake City, UT 84190
Open M-F 8am-5pm (except holidays)
Please note: Recording the form does not erase the original covenant from your property records. The original covenant is still there, but now the renunciation statement will be there as well. An analogy is amending the constitution where the amendment does not edit the original text but rather is stated separately and takes precedence going forward. This approach acknowledges both our history and changes over time.
If you have questions about this process or want to request more information, please contact Barbi Rollins at the Salt Lake County Recorder's Office
Email: PropertyWatch@slco.org
Phone: 385-468-8145
Learn if your Utah home had racist covenants and how to change them
Fox 13 Investigates
March 9, 2022
White property owners only? Racist covenants remain on books in Utah, but now there's a path to fix them.
Deseret News
April 2, 2021