Annie Schmidt sat in disbelief as the pulsing dial tone hummed in her ear.

Moments before, she had called an apartment complex about a listing for a one-bedroom unit. The conversation was going well — until she disclosed that her partner has a criminal record.

“Don’t even waste your money on an application,” Schmidt recalled the woman on the other end saying before she abruptly hung up.

Affordable housing is crucial for people with criminal records because it provides stability and a chance to move forward. In Washington, landlords cannot have a blanket ban on renting to anyone who has a previous felony conviction or arrest record. But the practice lingers and creates significant hurdles for those trying to reintegrate into society, Schmidt and her partner, Paul Malychewski, said.

Ma

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