Business and Personal Finance Dictionary

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• STEERING
  
  The illegal practice of channeling homeseekers interested in equivalent properties to particular areas, either to maintain the homogeneity of an area or to change the character of an area to create a speculative situation. This practice makes certain homes unavailable to homeseekers on the basis of race or national origin, and on these grounds it is prohibited by the provisions of the federal fair housing act. Steering is often difficult to detect, however, because the steering tactics can be so subtle that the homeseeker is unaware that his or her choice has been limited. Steering could be a licensee's use of a word, phrase or act that is intended to influence the choice of a prospective property buyer on a discriminatory basis.
  
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