Federal Fair Housing Act baseline plus New Hampshire-specific additions under N.H. Rev. Stat. § 354-A:8 et seq..
New Hampshire has no source-of-income protection at the state level and no major local SOI ordinance has been verified. Landlords statewide may decline Section 8 voucher applicants for reason of payment source alone, but cannot use voucher status as a pretext for discrimination based on a protected class such as race, family status, or disability.
Federal classes apply uniformly. The classes shaded green below are New Hampshire-specific additions under N.H. Rev. Stat. § 354-A:8 et seq..
HB 1319 (2018) added gender identity statewide.
The fact most New Hampshire landlords ask about first: can you turn down a Section 8 voucher holder? Here, the answer is yes. New Hampshire has no source-of-income protection, which means a landlord may decline a Section 8 voucher applicant for payment source alone. The catch is that "source of income" can never be used as a cover story for a denial that is really about race, family status, disability, or any other protected trait — that crosses into illegal discrimination even when the voucher is the stated reason.
Everything else flows from the state's anti-discrimination law, N.H. Rev. Stat. § 354-A:8 et seq., enforced by the New Hampshire Commission for Human Rights. On top of the seven federal Fair Housing Act classes, New Hampshire protects four more, and those additions — plus a few advertising and screening habits — are where small landlords most often get tripped up.
New Hampshire is a state where Housing Choice Vouchers carry no special legal shield. Because the statute does not list source of income as a protected class, a landlord can lawfully say no to a tenant simply because the rent would be paid in part by a Section 8 voucher, a housing subsidy, or other public assistance. There is no statewide mandate to accept vouchers and no local just-cause-to-refuse rule overriding it.
Two practical limits matter. First, once you do rent to a voucher holder, the ordinary fair-housing rules apply in full — you cannot treat that tenant worse on any protected basis. Second, refusing income source is only safe when it is genuinely about the payment mechanism. Using "no Section 8" as a pretext to screen out applicants by race, disability, or familial status is unlawful discrimination, and the Commission will look past the label to the real reason.
The federal Fair Housing Act protects seven classes: race, color, national origin, religion, sex, disability, and familial status. New Hampshire's law builds on that base by protecting four additional categories: sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, and age. That brings the state total to eleven protected characteristics a landlord must avoid considering in any rental decision.
The marital-status and age additions reach situations federal law leaves open — for example, refusing to rent to an unmarried couple, or steering an older applicant away from a unit. Sexual orientation and gender identity are protected at the state level here, and they also align with HUD's 2021 reading of the federal word "sex" after Bostock to include both. For a New Hampshire landlord, that means these grounds are covered twice over, and a violation can draw both state and federal exposure.
The most consequential recent change to this list was HB 1319 (2018), which added gender identity statewide. Before that law, transgender renters in New Hampshire had no explicit state housing protection; afterward, gender identity sits alongside sexual orientation and the other state-added classes inside N.H. Rev. Stat. § 354-A.
For landlords, the practical upshot is straightforward: a tenant's gender identity is off-limits as a basis for denial, different terms, or different treatment, just like race or religion. Application questions, tenant interactions, and accommodation requests should be handled with that in mind. Pairing the state law with HUD's post-Bostock federal stance means there is no gray area left to exploit, and treating a transgender applicant differently is a clear violation under both layers of law.
Most New Hampshire fair-housing complaints come not from open hostility but from sloppy habits. Advertising language is a frequent trap: phrases like "perfect for a single professional," "ideal for a mature tenant," or "no children" can implicate marital status, age, and familial status even when no harm is intended. Keep listings focused on the unit, not the desired occupant.
Screening is the other risk zone. Apply the same income, credit, and reference standards to every applicant, and write them down before you advertise — inconsistent criteria are how a denial that felt neutral becomes evidence of bias. With average rent around $1,280, income tests can quietly screen by family size or age unless they are applied uniformly. When a complaint lands, the New Hampshire Commission for Human Rights investigates, can order remedies, and matters may escalate to federal civil penalties.
Fair-housing complaint rates correlate with overall tenant-protection enforcement. View landlord risk and tenant-law profile by city:
This guide summarizes New Hampshire fair-housing law under N.H. Rev. Stat. § 354-A:8 et seq., enforced by the New Hampshire Commission for Human Rights, alongside the federal Fair Housing Act (42 U.S.C. § 3604). Last reviewed June 2026. It is provided for general informational purposes and is not legal advice; consult a qualified New Hampshire attorney or the Commission for guidance on a specific situation.
Yes. New Hampshire has no source-of-income protection, so a landlord may decline a Section 8 voucher applicant for payment source alone. The one limit is that "no Section 8" cannot be used as a pretext to mask a denial that is actually based on a protected class such as race, disability, or familial status.
Eleven. The seven federal Fair Housing Act classes — race, color, national origin, religion, sex, disability, and familial status — plus four added by N.H. Rev. Stat. § 354-A: sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, and age.
Yes, both. Sexual orientation is protected under state law, and gender identity was added statewide by HB 1319 in 2018. They are also covered federally under HUD's 2021 reading of "sex" after Bostock, so a New Hampshire landlord faces both state and federal exposure for discriminating on these grounds.
The New Hampshire Commission for Human Rights enforces N.H. Rev. Stat. § 354-A:8 et seq. It investigates complaints and can order remedies. Because the state classes overlap with federal law, violations may also trigger federal civil penalties under the Fair Housing Act.
Federal authority: 42 U.S.C. § 3604; 24 C.F.R. Part 100. State authority: N.H. Rev. Stat. § 354-A:8 et seq.. Last updated July 14, 2026. For informational purposes only, not legal advice. Fair-housing determinations are highly fact-specific; consult a licensed New Hampshire attorney before making a screening, denial, or eviction decision.
