By Nicole Seidner

When you think of an emotional support animal, what comes to mind? It would be fair to assume the first thought to enter one’s head would be a dog, if not some kind of bipedal mammal — and most likely not a reptilian carnivore with razor-sharp teeth. In enters Wally Gator: a five-and-a-half foot, 70-pound TikTok famous alligator with over 72,600 followers on the platform owned by Philadelphia, Pennsylvania native Joie Henney. While it is legal to own alligators in Philadelphia, that isn’t the case in many other states — nor is it likely that the majority of pet gators, if any, qualify as emotional support animals. Or is it?

By Giacomo Valentini¹

As of writing this article, for the first time in several years landlords in California do not face the risk of prosecution for price gouging whenever they raise the rent on new or existing tenants by more than 10%.

Penal Code Article 396, also known as the anti-price gouging law prohibits increases in prices over 10% within 30 days of a declaration of a state of emergency at national, state, county or local level. It applies to goods sold in stores, services such as clearing up services, construction, emergency supplies and so on, and also crucially applies to housing leases of 12 months or less.

By Steve Haskell, Vice President, Kay Properties and Investments, LLC

The recent fluctuations in the United States stock market have many investors looking for more conservative and less volatile investments. That’s why more and more investors are attracted to Real Estate Income Funds. 

While Kay Properties & Investments is best known for its expert-level knowledge of Delaware Statutory Trust 1031 exchange investment strategies and opportunities, the company also has a great reputation for working with nationally recognized real estate sponsors to source and structure All-Cash/Debt-Free Real Estate Income Funds for accredited investors.

Dispelling  the most common Myths of the ADA and Your Responsibilities to Comply

By Anthony C. Guichard, President, ACR Concrete & Asphalt Construction, Inc.

ADA lawsuits are on the rise for a variety of reasons. Mostly because owners and tenants with properties or businesses that are open to the public are not addressing and making corrections properly.

The most common reason we multiple ADA lawsuits filed against owners of property or businesses is due to not following certain guidelines. Most defendants simply contact an asphalt contractor and have them perform the corrections outlined in the lawsuit. This is a critical mistake since asphalt contractors do not necessarily have the expertise to ensure compliance under ADA rules.

These are the famous lyrics of rock legend, Jim Morrison, from the epic Doors song, “The End.” Those of us in the rental housing business have will have had our “end” of sorts with the intended end of the City of Los Angeles moratorium on evictions on January 31, 2023, and the end of the moratorium on rent increases twelve months later on January 31, 2024 – yes, that’s no typo, it’s 2024. At the City Council meeting held on the eve of the Jewish Day of Atonement, Yom Kippur, some of our prayers were heard and we dodged a bullet shot from the pen of Councilmember Nithya Raman who wanted to tack on another month to an already painful nearly three years under moratoriums – just stick the knife a bit deeper and twist it a little bit more I can only imagine was her line of thinking at the moment her failed amendment was proposed.

By Jerry L’Ecuyer & Frank Alvarez

Dear Apartment Owners:

Remember, the holiday season starts with Halloween and the demand on your properties only gets worse from there.  Check each stove and oven for proper operation, many residents only turn on their ovens at this time of year, and the problem may be as simple as a blown-out pilot light.  This time of year sees a higher than normal use of the plumbing, it may be a good idea to snake out or hydro jet your main plumbing lines.  In addition, sending a note to each tenant on the proper use of the garbage disposal will be useful.  Note what they should and should not put down the disposal unit.  A few items to include on this No No list are banana peals, potato skins, coffee grounds and any stringy food.  Also, make sure they turn on the water before using the disposer and put down small amounts of food at a time. Using the disposer as a trash can and turning it on when full, will lead to a clog.  

Kimball, Tirey & St. John LLP

1.  Question:  We rent a house to a family.  My husband helped the tenant move a washing machine into the laundry room and noticed that the tenant’s defective hoses had leaked water onto the sheetrock.  We want to have the sheetrock repaired.  Can we deduct the cost from his security deposit and then send a 30-day notice for the tenant to reinstate that amount?

Answer:  You can serve a 3-day notice to perform conditions and covenants or quit to require the tenant to make repairs or to pay for the repairs if there is an appropriate provision in your lease regarding damages.  If they do not comply with the notice, you can proceed with an eviction, or alternatively, deduct repair costs from their security deposit.

By Ali Sahabi

Growing alarm over the threat of earthquakes up and down the Pacific coast has sparked an influx of inexperienced companies hoping to get a piece of a new business opportunity. In this atmosphere, how can you tell who’s legitimate and who’s not?

Here are four easy steps to ensure you are selecting a reputable firm to do the work, and that the process followed will bring you the best results for the safety of your tenants and protection of your building.

The Yardi Breeze team stumbled across a question on a popular multifamily discussion group. It was a simple question, but it set off a flurry of responses. A property manager discovered one of her residents had been keeping an unauthorized dog in the community. They confronted the resident, who said, “This is my partner’s emotional support animal.” The resident’s partner, as you might have guessed, was not on the lease.

So, does the resident’s partner’s assistance animal have a right to be on the property? Or is the property management office within their rights to deny the guest’s animal? After all unauthorized pets are not allowed on-site and the guest is not on the lease.

Which Is Right for Your Roof

Authored by Steve Pinkus, Owner of Royal Roofing Company

For your flat or low slope roof, there are more re-roofing options available now than ever. Choosing what’s right for you can be overwhelming if you’re not prepared.

Picking a roof can feel harder to do than picking just one ice cream topping at a shop with unlimited options. Unlike dessert, your roof can cost thousands of dollars, and you’ll have to stick with it for 5, 10, or even 15 or more years.