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the first to take legal action challenging the CDC’s authority last September by joining the National Civil Liberties Alliance lawsuit, Richard Lee Brown, et al. v. Secretary Alex Azar, et al.
The COVID-19 pandemic was devastating, and if we do not act, the housing affordability crisis may grow into a catastrophe where the government could invoke more “emergency” remedies. With the meter on rent debt still running, political will waning and Congress moving past COVID-relief measures, NAA is putting up the greatest fight yet and asking the courts for two things: Fair compensation for damages suffered under the unlawful CDC order and an assurance that the federal government can never do this again. The rental housing industry cannot be held solely responsible for an unfunded rent debt while the federal government trades one crisis for another. Ultimately, making housing providers and their residents whole again will help secure the long-term health of the rental housing industry and ensures households across the income spectrum have continued access to rental housing.
6-FIGURES NEEDED TO REMOVE SAN FRANCISCO TENANT?
San Francisco landlords wanting to evict tenants in an effort to increase rents or remove a renter for “no-fault” reasons are paying more money than ever before to get renters to leave voluntarily. According to a recent news report, one San Francisco landlord paid longtime renters of a luxury, 7-bedroom Presidio Heights apartment an all-time record relocation fee of $475,000. The “lucky” tenants, a couple in their 60s, had lived in the apartment for 30 years.
Experts analyzing the situation in San Francisco have said that the large buyouts are a natural result of San Francisco’s system of rent control that enables renters to remain housed despite market forces that would otherwise drive them out. These large buyout amounts have typically gone to longtime renters of upscale units whose monthly rents have remained well below market value after decades of residency. According to experts familiar with the market, this buyout was an “outlier,” and that buyouts of $10,000 to $50,000 are more the norm.
LAS VEGAS LANDLORD TAKES MATTERS INTO HIS OWN HANDS
The Las Vegas Police Department reported a dispute over past due rent led to a shooting by
a landlord that left two women tenants dead and another male tenant critically injured. A 79-year-old landlord, Arnoldo Lozano-Sanchez, was allegedly angry that the occupants who rented rooms in his home were not paying the rent. The police reported that the landlord stated that he “wanted to handle it his way.” The names of the victims, all in their 50s, were not immediately released.
APARTMENT RENTERS ARE MOST LIKELY VICTIMS OF PACKAGE THEFT
Apartment renters, while many are without a “porch” itself, are the most likely victims of package theft, according to new research conducted by Security. org (https://www.security.org). The Security.org research found 56% of apartment renters have experienced package theft as compared to just 35% living in a single-family house. Other key findings from the research include:
• Overall, package theft, which has steadily grown since the beginning of the pandemic and peaked at an all-time high this 2020 Holiday Season with 22% experiencing the crime, is down in 2021 by five percentage points to 17%.
• Still 21 million U.S. households have been victimized by package theft this year, albeit down from 25 million households during the 2020 Holiday Season.
• Victims with home security products, such as a doorbell camera, report package theft crimes to the police by nearly 20% more than those without.
WOMAN WITH 3 PROPERTIES LEFT HOMELESS BECAUSE TENANTS COULDN’T BE EVICTED
A landlord in New York said she has been left homeless and owed thousands of dollars from uncollected rent from tenants she can’t kick out due to state and federal moratoriums.
APARTMENT MANAGEMENT MAGAZINE - SEPTEMBER 2021 CS-3