By David Crown

If you’d looked closely, you may have noticed a new type of property owner in the market. This class of owner is confident in every aspect of their investments. They don’t stress the minutia of day-to-day work on their properties. They live in a state of sureness regarding the direction of their assets, and they out-earn their competitors by a wide margin. But the owners I’m describing aren’t some species created in a lab for the sole purpose of profiting on rental property. They’re not hyper-educated prodigies of real estate. They don’t all wear the same sunglasses, and the truth is, they don’t know anything you don’t—except maybe for one thing. They know that no owner can afford to settle for management that’s less than excellent. Their secret is that, rather than hiring the bare minimum, they’ve chosen property managers they can depend on as trusted advisors. If you’re a rental property owner and your manager doesn’t offer you that type of confidence, you should find one who does.  

If Passed, Senate Bill 668 Could Delay Impacts of Proposition 19

By Jon Coupal, Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association

It is hard to imagine anything more callous than the government sending a giant tax bill to a bereaved family, but thanks to Proposition 19, many California families will have that unfortunate experience.  Proposition 19, which passed by a razor-thin margin in the November election, expanded a tax break for some homeowners but repealed an important taxpayer protection for families. The effective date of this change was February 16 before most Californians even knew what had happened.

Here is what happened: homes that are transferred between parents and children are no longer excluded from reassessment. Previously, children would continue to pay the same property tax bill that their parents had paid, with increases in the assessed value capped by Proposition 13 at a maximum of 2% per year. Not anymore. Now children inheriting their parents’ home or other property will receive a new tax bill based on a current market-rate assessment.

By Ali Sahabi

Nearly everyone has experienced some of the widespread economic impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic — business closures, loss of income, unemployment, working remotely, or unavailability of services we have come to depend on.

And many of us know someone who has been personally impacted by illness or death.

COVID-19 raged into our communities somewhat unexpectedly, much like an earthquake or other natural disaster might, and the impacts have been very much the same: lives lost, medical services stretched thin, businesses shuttered, jobs lost and economic disruption.

Risks of an L.A. earthquake

Now that California is in recovery, and life is “getting back to normal” – it’s time to focus on building community resilience for all natural and manmade disasters, including the very real threat of a major earthquake striking Los Angeles.

According to the great depository of knowledge in this Universe, Wikipedia, the term “woke” refers to awareness of issues that concern social and racial justice.  Use of the term “woke” resurfaced in 2014 in connection with the Black Lives Matter movement as a label for vigilance and activism concerning racial inequalities and other social disparities such as discrimination against the LGBTQ+ community, women, immigrants, and other marginalized populations.

“Woke,” however, has earlier beginnings.  Centuries ago, the term was used in place of “woken,” which is the usual past participle form of wake (I had to look this up because I had forgotten what a past participle was from my high school English courses.  I studied accounting in college, so what do I know from past participles?  Nevertheless, a past participle is the form of a verb, typically ending in “-ed” in English, which is used in forming perfect and passive tenses and sometimes as an adjective, e.g. “looked” in “have you looked?” or “lost” as in “lost property.”  Now I have confused myself a bit more…).  This then, led to the use the term “woke” as an adjective similar to “awake,” which has become mainstream here in the United States.

1. Update your property marketing 

When is the last time you did a health check on your property marketing? With leasing season upon us, this is the perfect time to refresh your community marketing strategy.

• Update your online listings 
• Review your lead generation process (the marketing funnel)
• Walk the property and consider its curb appeal as though you’ve never seen it before
• Set up a referral program for current residents

2. Inspect roads, sidewalks & pathways at the property 

When prospects visit a manufactured community for the first time, they’ll start forming judgments before they even get out of their car. 

What’s the condition of the community roads and pathways?

Is it easy to identify restricted fire hydrant curb access? 

Are the sidewalks (if applicable) easy to walk over without tripping?

These spring maintenance tasks may not seem like high ROI concerns, but they matter to community members. They’re also important for resident safety.

Winter temperatures can damage concrete and asphalt. If you chose not to address a small crack or pothole last year, it might have gotten worse. You want to make a good first impression on any first-time visitors, so make sure your roads and walkways are in tip-top shape for leasing season.

Provided by AppFolio

Owning or managing multifamily property in the Los Angeles Area has not been easy during the COVID-19 pandemic.  Some of the strictest lockdown measures have taken place in the City and County of Los Angeles, and throughout California.  California now has the third highest unemployment rate nationally, greatly impacting residents’ ability to pay rent. In addition, new regulations will create additional challenges for rental property owners and managers to contend with. 

Due to the tough multifamily market in the Greater Los Angeles Area, rental property owners and managers have no choice but to seek creative solutions to boost their net operating income or “N.O.I.,” including through more efficient maintenance workflows and utility management. This is where technology can help.

More than Four Decades of Retreaded Housing Policy Has Only Led to Increased Housing Shortages and Homelessness

By Jenifer Anisman, Associate, Law Firm of Harold Greenberg

This article addresses the unintended ramifications of tough eviction control.  Tenant advocates are fighting for tougher legislation on landlords, including proposals that would require Landlords to pay for tenant attorney’s fees when facing eviction.  It is no secret; however, that the toughest rent / eviction control laws exist in the cities with the highest homelessness rates. 

Yet, the response is to implement even tougher laws, and the result?  Well, I see more homelessness.  Is this a chicken or egg situation?  Are the two even related?  Persons experiencing homelessness come from a myriad of backgrounds and situations.  Do all homeless persons want to be housed?  This is a complicated question.  Tenant’s Rights groups who identify themselves as “homelessness prevention” fighters have no basis for this claim.  They merely use it as a ploy to win their cases and recover attorney’s fees from Landlords.  Do you disagree?  If so, please continue reading…

More than one year into the COVID-19 pandemic, we explore where rent prices stand today compared to one year ago.

National average rent price trends

On a national level, we’re noticing a shift in recent patterns. Studios and one-bedrooms are showing some recovery in price, possibly reflecting growing demand. Two-bedrooms have adjusted down slightly, but are still up more than five percent year-over-year. Three-bedrooms are up, both since last month and since this time last year.

• 0-BR: $1,603 (+1.0 percent from prior month / -1.3 percent year-over-year)
• 1-BR: $1,610 (+1.6 percent from prior month / +3.2 percent year-over-year)
• 2-BR: $1,881 (-1.1 percent from prior month / +5.3 percent year-over-year)
• 3-BR: $2,036 (+1.9 percent from prior month / +4.2 percent year-over-year)

By Edward Ring

Sixty years ago, when California was governed by people who were sane pragmatists, homes were affordable and very few people were homeless. To support new housing, government funds were focused on building enabling infrastructure. California’s freeways and expressways connected new suburbs to urban cores, and the California Water Project delivered abundant water to the growing population. As a result, industry, jobs, and people poured into California, attracted by the beautiful weather and the low cost-of-living. Back then, California was the best place on earth to live.

For at least the last twenty years, California politics have been controlled by leftist ideologues. Their policies are impractical, the consequences are insane. Homes are unaffordable and entire cities have been taken over by homeless encampments. California’s infrastructure is neglected, and the ability of private developers to profitably build homes that normal people can afford has been destroyed by overregulation. In 2020, for the first time since achieving statehood over 170 years ago, California’s population actually declined.