If an appraiser refuses to appraise properties in areas with high minority populations, what law might this violate?

The correct answer is that refusing to appraise properties in areas with high minority populations may violate the Civil Rights Act of 1866. This act establishes that all persons in the United States have the same right to enter into contracts and to sue. It prohibits discrimination based on race in all contracts, which includes the contracts involved in real estate transactions and appraisals. An appraiser's refusal to evaluate properties in predominantly minority areas can be seen as discriminatory behavior, suggesting that it upholds racial biases.

The Fair Housing Act, while also relevant to discrimination in housing, particularly focuses on the sale, rental, and financing of housing, rather than appraiser practices specifically. The Equal Credit Opportunity Act primarily deals with credit transactions to prevent discrimination based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex, marital status, or age, which is not directly about appraising properties. The Americans with Disabilities Act addresses discrimination against individuals with disabilities and does not pertain to issues of race and minority populations.

Thus, the Civil Rights Act of 1866 specifically underlines the importance of non-discrimination in contractual agreements, which aligns with the appraiser’s responsibility to provide equal treatment to all properties, regardless of the demographics of the surrounding community.