Federal Fair Housing Act (FHA) is passed, prohibiting discrimination concerning the sale, rental and financing of housing based on race, religion, national origin or sex. Prior to this it was assumed to be legal for homeowners to refuse to sell homes to Black families or for banks to deny loans to Black potential home buyers or for brokers to steer Black families away from some neighbors and towns. However, the FHA had a basic enforcement problem, since it required the victims of discrimination to file a formal complaint with HUD or sue in federal court.