Don’t Miss the West Coast’s Largest Income Property Expo – Attendance is Free!

Explore Investment Opportunities Both Large and Small, Meet 100’s of Vendors

The Income Property Management Exposition (IPME) returns to the Pasadena Convention Center Tuesday, May 23^rd, and this year promises to be bigger and better than ever before.  IPME provides rental property owners, managers, and investors with the latest insights to succeed in the changing rental housing market. In response to the high demand for rental housing, rising inflation, interest rates, and pandemic-driven challenges, IPME offers an opportunity to learn how to adapt and thrive in this ever-changing marketplace.

Pick up the phone today to tell Supervisors Solis & Horvath “NO!”

At the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors meeting on February 7, 2023, Supervisor Solis proposed and Supervisor Horvath seconded a last-minute amendment that was not originally on the agenda to revise the Homeless Emergency Declaration (Agenda Item #16) to support using this new “emergency” to extend the eviction moratorium indefinitely to all rental housing throughout LA County. They requested a report back in 45 days legally instructing them how to do so.

The Wait is Finally Over: Join Your Peers for the “Business of Property Management”

For over a decade, the Income Property Management Expo & Exhibition (IPME) has provided property owners, managers, investors, and real estate professionals with the information they require to succeed in the ever-changing real estate business.  With the increased demand for rental housing, an unprecedented rate of inflation, rising interest rates, and pandemic-driven moratoriums, it’s time to be reinvigorated, get back to work, join together with peers and industry experts, and learn how to navigate the new normal of today’s real estate marketplace. IPME attendees will discover many new strategies and tools property owners and investors require to thrive in this post-pandemic environment.

The Los Angeles Area’s largest, most important annual property management expo is back after a two-year, pandemic-driven hiatus, offering fresh strategies so attendees can get back into the game of making informed real estate decisions.

Governor Signs Assembly Bill 3088, the “Tenant, Homeowner, and Small Landlord Relief and Stabilization Act of 2020”

Bill Passed by Overwhelming Majority, Bipartisan Vote in Both the Assembly (59-9) and Senate (33-2)

As anticipated, late Monday night, Assembly Bill 3088, the “Tenant, Homeowner, and Small Landlord Relief and Stabilization Act of 2020” was signed into law by Governor Gavin Newsom and takes effect immediately.  The “key” provisions contained in the legislation are described below.

In response to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, cities throughout California are issuing orders and adopting urgency ordinances establishing temporary eviction moratoriums on evictions due to non-payment of rent for renters impacted by COVID-19.  Some cities are also prohibiting “no-fault” evictions except in limited circumstances.  In addition, some cities are also prohibiting Ellis Act evictions.

The number of cities that have instituted temporary eviction moratoriums continues to expand.  The list provided below is a sampling of the cities, with links to their orders and/or ordinances, that have implemented temporary moratoriums and not inclusive of all the cities that may adopt such moratoriums.  The Apartment Association of Greater Los Angeles is committed to providing updated information throughout the pandemic.

Rely on the People Who Know Science.

When coronavirus has been detected in a rental unit, the first and most compelling course of action is to call local public health officials to seek guidance in how to handle it.

Ask the infected tenant to voluntarily place themselves in a hospital facility, or at a bare minimum, self-isolate themselves.  For someone who exhibited symptoms or has tested positive, the most prudent course of action is to admit themselves into a medical facility. We still do not yet know, though, if the health care system can accommodate an influx of patients. In last Sunday’s press conference, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo says a serious concern for his state (and, by extension, California) is that the number of infected people can severely tax the resources of hospitals.  Alternatively, a resident who tests positive for the virus can ideally self-isolate themselves in the rental unit.  Asking someone to sever ties with the rest of the world, of course, is a request that is hard to swallow, but hopefully heeded.  Tenants who are infected should be told that in the interest of transparency, other residents will be notified that someone in the building has tested positive; however, the name of the inflicted tenant shall remain anonymous.

As the situation surrounding COVID-19 (coronavirus) continues to evolve, the Apartment Association of Greater Los Angeles and the producer of the Income Property Management Expo & Maintenance Mania has been committed to working closely with the City of Pasadena Public Health Department, Los Angeles County Department of Public Health and we have been monitoring guidance being communicated by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

State public health experts have determined that gatherings should be postponed or canceled across the state until at least the end of March. Non-essential gatherings must be limited to no more than 250 people, while smaller events can proceed only if the organizers can implement social distancing of 6 feet per person. Gatherings of individuals who are at higher risk for severe illness from COVID-19 should be limited to no more than 10 people, while also following social distancing guidelines.

As a result, we are postponing the March 24th Income Property Management Expo until Wednesday, October 7th.  The Expo at that time will again take place at the Pasadena Convention Center. In addition, Maintenance Mania will be cancelled until further notice. Additional information regarding the event will be made available as soon as possible.

While the rental housing industry in California has been abuzz about the latest rent control and “just cause” eviction law (more on that below), Gov. Newsom has passed five other rental laws. From extended rent increase notices to the mandatory acceptance of Section 8 vouchers, you won’t want to miss these other hot-off-the-press laws.

On Tuesday, October 8^th, California Governor Newsom signed into law Assembly Bill 1482 imposing rent control and just-cause eviction rules and fees across California. After a long battle within the state, rental properties not currently covered by stricter rent control provisions will need to adapt to the upcoming changes by January 1^st, 2020.

Join Us for Cocktails and Appetizers at the Beautiful Hotel Maya

Date: May 24, 2023 | Time: 5:00 P.M. to 7:00 P.M.

Location: 700 Queensway Drive, Long Beach, CA 90802

Cost: FREE for AAGLA Members and Invited Guests | $25.00 for Future Members

Register Today: www.AAGLA.org/events | Diana@AAGLA.org

Join your fellow housing providers for a “meet and greet” with Mayor Rex Richardson of the City of Long Beach. During this FREE, member exclusive event, you will hear Mayor Richardson’s views on the future of housing and affordability challenges in Long Beach and Los Angeles County. Mayor Richardson will be joined by other City of Long Beach Officials from the City’s Housing Authority and Health and Human Services Department.

ABOUT MAYOR RICHARDSON

Rex Richardson is the 29th Mayor of Long Beach: a husband, father, and trailblazer as the first Black mayor in the city’s history.

Since taking office, Mayor Richardson has led with his Opportunity Beach Agenda—the first 100-day plan ever presented by a Mayor of Long Beach. He is tackling major issues like homelessness, building an economy where everyone thrives, creating safe and healthy communities, investing in youth, and supporting a sustainable and resilient city.

In 2014, Richardson became the youngest person in history elected to the Long Beach City Council. In 2016, he was elected to a two-year term as Vice Mayor, also the youngest in city history. He was then re-elected to the Long Beach City Council in 2018 and re-elected as Vice Mayor in 2020. Regionally, Mayor Richardson has served as past President of the Southern California Association of Governments and as a board member of the South Coast Air Quality Management District. His vision is to advance the leadership of Long Beach as the second-largest city in the region, which also holds the second-largest port in the State and the fastest-growing aerospace cluster in the nation.

Moderator – Daniel Yukelson, Executive Director, Apartment Association of Greater L.A.

By Max Glassburg

If improving renter retention feels a bit like chasing your tail, you might just need a few simple renter engagement ideas to keep people around, bring in positive property reviews and cultivate the apartment community of your dreams. The good news is that resident satisfaction is actually pretty high across the board. In fact, most U.S. residents are satisfied with where they live. Some are unhappy, but many sit somewhere in the middle.

What did we do to deserve it? For years, we worked two jobs, our real 9-5 job and our rental property owner job. We saved and sacrificed to invest in income property so that someday, with any luck, we will have more than just Social Security to retire on. Our ulterior motive is nothing more than to provide for ourselves and family, and to invest in and house members of our local community. Sometimes, our investments would house ourselves and our families. Nothing more, nothing less.

You’ve seen ads for rental insurance. But do you know what it covers OR if you can require tenants to get it? 

Rental insurance is a specific type of policy that covers possessions within the home as opposed to the home itself. It is highly beneficial to your residents in the event of flood or similar disaster since you are not responsible for damage to personal possessions – only the property itself. Some property owners may require tenants to obtain rental insurance. Even if you don’t require your residents to have renal insurance, you can advise them to get it. 

By Will Swaim

We’ve seen Gov. Gavin Newsom impose questionable — even dangerous and illegal — policies by declaring states of emergency or merely “crisis” with regard to Covid, climate and energy. He’s done it again on the issue of housing. The problems of housing affordability and homelessness constitute a crisis so compelling, the governor says, that they can be solved only by forcing cities to permit the construction of 2.5 million new homes by 2030.

By Nate Bernstein, Esq.- Managing Counsel of LA Real Estate Law Group

If your case or law and motion matter in Superior Court does not settle, you run the gauntlet and risk of having a judge decide the issue before the court.    

                 It is important to understand that judges are overworked, and by some standards under paid for their long hours.  Judges are human beings, and are not paper pushing robots.  Because they see issues over and over again, they bored with the mundane, and like to hear interesting issues- such as a products liability case where the air bags failed to deploy.   Judges rely on their staff research attorneys  a great deal to complete research and decide legal issues. The research attorneys will do extensive research, will work up the matter,  and make recommendations to the judge.     The judge may not have time and resources to read all or some of the papers that you file in court for a hearing- it may not be humanly possible to ready 15 motions in limine before trial starts.     

The national index for one- and two-bedroom rentals remained flat month-over-month, pointing to a possible inflection point between supply and demand following several months of near-flat rent increases. One-bedroom rentals remained unchanged (0.0%) from January 2023 at $1,492 per month, while two-bedroom rentals increased just 0.1% to $1,824, respectively.  

Zumper monthly rent data provides insights to where the Consumer Price Index is heading. Year-over-year rent-price increases continued to decelerate from post-pandemic-era increases in 2021 and 2022. However, average rents for one-bedroom rentals still increased 7.3% year-over-year (YOY), while the average rent for two-bedrooms increased 6.8% YOY.  By comparison, rents for one- and two-bedroom rentals had increased 12.8% and 13.8% YOY from 2021 to 2022, respectively—a good sign for renters if the trend continues.

Brittany Benz

For residential property management, leasing season runs from May through September, with July and August typically seeing the most volume. To maximize profits and see greater levels of success during this critical time, property management teams need to be ready long before the season begins. In addition, resources need to be fully committed and optimized during peak times in order to meet high prospect demand and expectations.

Keep reading to discover leasing season strategies that will give your team a competitive edge and boost efficiency before and during leasing season. 

Why do West Coast cities seem so incapable of dealing with the homelessness crisis?

By Irene Smith, JD, PhD, San Jose Area Rental Housing Provider

It’s easy to blame government incompetence, but there’s something even more fundamental at work: Martin vs.Boise,e a landmark case from the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. That’s a 2019 legal decision that ruled homelessness is not a crime and that unless shelter is provided, people may sleep in public spaces. Worthy sentiments, to be sure. It certainly should not be a crime to be homeless.

San Jose does not have enough shelter for every unhoused person. [Editor’s Note: Nor do any other West Coast cities and counties.] So, unhoused persons live in parks and along creek sides and the City uses re-traumatizing abatements to clean encampments instead of offering quick shelter.

It’s tempting to think that the “atmospheric rivers” that have deluged California and neighboring states with more than 32 million gallons of rain and snow mean that the drought is finally over. Many reservoirs are at close-to-normal levels for the first time in years, and some areas have actually experienced dangerous flooding. But Californians need to remain vigilant about water consumption and saving water. Why?