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instead of rewarding them for that, our current system ... actually penalizes them for that.”
Dan Yukelson, executive director of the Apartment Association of Greater Los Angeles -- who had not seen the motions at the time he spoke to City News Service -- said his organization has opposed similar efforts to prevent landlords from considering potential renters’ criminal records.
“Nobody will ever rent out their apartments if they can’t check on something like whether somebody has been a criminal. What if someone is a child molester and you have young children in the building?” he said.
The motions will next be reviewed by the City Council’s Housing Committee before being considered by the full City Council.
PROPERTY OWNERS SUE OAKLAND, ALAMEDA COUNTY TO END EVICTION MORATORIUM
Owners of rental properties filed suit Tuesday to challenge the two-year-old moratorium on evictions in Oakland and Alameda County, saying the local government orders violate their property rights and are being abused by tenants to withhold rent for reasons unrelated to the coronavirus.
The local eviction bans took effect in March 2020, after Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a statewide emergency that also included an eviction moratorium, later extended by state lawmakers. But the lawsuit said the statewide moratorium, scheduled to expire at the end of this month, allowed nonpayment of rent only for financial reasons related to the pandemic, while Oakland and Alameda County have no such restrictions. The city and county allow eviction only if a renter poses a threat to public safety or the owner is converting the building to non-rental property.
“(T)here is no justification for such extreme measures,” the lawsuit said. It was filed in federal court on behalf of five owners of rental housing and Housing Providers of America.
CS-4 APRIL 2022 - APARTMENT MANAGEMENT MAGAZINE
The suit seeks an end to both moratorium orders and damages for the owners’ property losses. Although the tenants still owe unpaid rent and are legally obliged to repay it, the suit said some tenants have already left without paying, despite rental assistance available from both the city and the county. The suit accused the local governments of “taking,” or confiscating, the owners’ property by enabling nonpayments.
Housing agencies in Oakland and Alameda County did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
One plaintiff, the owner of a rental home in Oakland, said one of his tenants had paid rent regularly for 10 years but stopped paying $1,500 a month at the start of the moratorium and has not resumed, for reasons unrelated to the pandemic. Another plaintiff said a tenant in Hayward had been harassing other tenants, then came to an agreement to move out in 2020, but remained in place after the moratorium and hasn’t paid rent since then.
Another Oakland homeowner said in the suit that when she entered the unit of a tenant who currently owes $5,000 in rent, it was infested with insects and one of its cabinets was hung from the ceiling.
The owners contended the pandemic is receding locally, and tenants no longer need any special protections. “The Bay Area is open for business,” attorney Andrew Zacks said in the suit.
A similar suit has been filed by property owners in Los Angeles County against the county and the state of California.
LIVABLE SMART SAVER TIP OF THE MONTH
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