LA City Council to Vote On Multiple Ordinances Ending Moratoriums & Expanding Just Cause Citywide!
As Ordinances Ending the Moratoriums on Evictions and Rent Increases Are Brought Forward, the City Council is Also Contemplating an Ordinance Imposing Just Cause Eviction Requirements on Non-RSO Rental Units and Other Adverse Permanent Rental Housing Proposals!
It is anticipated that as early as next Tuesday, November 29th the Los Angeles City Council will be voting on three draft ordinances: (1) ending the City’s eviction moratorium on January 31, 2023 with exceptions, (2) ending the City’s rent increase freeze on January 31, 2024, and (3) imposing the City’s Rent Stabilization Ordinance (RSO) just cause and relocation fee requirements on non-RSO rental units as well as instituting new notice requirements for the filing of copies of tenancy termination notices with the City’s Housing Department.
In addition to these draft ordinances, it is anticipated that the City Council will also be discussing and potentially approving a recently released Los Angeles Housing Department (LAHD) report and related recommendations calling for the drafting of two additional extremely detrimental ordinances that would (1) impose a new requirement on rental housing providers of newer buildings, not subject to either the City’s RSO or the State’s rent control provisions under Assembly Bill 1482, which would require that they pay relocation fees and moving expenses when a renter moves out following a rent increase above a specified percentage and (2) impose new restrictions through the setting of a monetary threshold for the amount of unpaid rent that a renter must owe to be evicted for failing to pay rent - Council File 21-0042-S3.
Please check your email as we will provide updates with additional information on Monday morning.
What You Need to Know:
End to Eviction Moratorium
The draft ordinance under consideration would bring a long overdue end to the City’s eviction moratorium on January 31, 2023 with certain exceptions.
These exceptions include:
- Evictions based on the presence of unauthorized occupants or pets necessiated by COVID-19 would remain prohibited until January 31, 2024 and will require that the rental housing provider serve a 30-day notice to cure prior to issuing a tenancy termination
- Ellis Act evictions would also remain prohibited until April 1, 2023
After January 31, 2023, no-fault evictions to install a resident manager would be limited to circumstances where an onsite manager is required by law or the terms of a regulatory agreement unless a prior declaration of intent to evict for resident manager occupancy had been submitted to LAHD before March 4, 2020.
It is important to note that based on actions taken during a recent Los Angeles Housing Committee meeting, the draft ordinance was further revised to eliminate the requirement that renters provide notice of their inability to pay rent that becomes due between December 1, 2022 and January 31, 2023.
To review the full details of the revised draft ordinance, please click on the button below:
End to Rent Increase Freeze
The draft ordinance under consideration would maintain the City’s moratorium on rent increases until January 31, 2024, a year beyond the end of the City’s eviction moratorium and longer than any other locality!
To review the full details of the draft ordinance, please click on the button below:
RENT INCREASE FREEZE ORDINANCE
Imposition of Just Cause Eviction Requirements on Non-RSO Rental Units
The draft ordinance under consideration would generally impose the City’s existing RSO just cause eviction requirements on non-RSO Rental Units limiting permissible evictions to those set forth in the proposed ordinance and requiring housing providers to pay excessive relocation fees for no-fault evictions that are exponentially greater than what is currently required under the State Law – Assembly Bill 1482!
Relocation fees amounts would be determined based on the length of tenancy and whether or not the renter is deemed to be a qualified renter as defined in the draft ordinance. Rental housing providers would be required to pay as much as $22,950! This amount does not include related City fees which require that housing providers pay an additional fee for a City Relocation Assistance Service Provider.
The draft ordinance also includes noticing and notice posting requirements and imposes civil penalties on housing providers who fail to pay relocation fees that include damages based on the amount of relocation fee that has not been paid, reasonable attorney’s fees and costs as determined by the Court. Ordinance violations would be a misdemeanor.
This draft ordinance was also subject to further revisions based on the Housing Committee’s actions including eliminating the one-year tenancy requirement as set forth in Assembly Bill 1482, and additional amendments to more closely mirror the City’s RSO provisions related to owner-occupancy, additional occupants, and property conversions.
To review the full details of the revised draft ordinance, please click on the button below:
JUST CAUSE NON-RSO RENTAL UNITS ORDINANCE
LAHD Report and Related Recommendations
In addition to the draft ordinances, discussed above, the City Council may will also consider approval of an LAHD report dated November 2, 2022, which includes recommendations for the drafting of two additional ordinances that would only serve to permanently hinder rental housing providers ability to operate. Equally concerning is that these proposals are being rushed through with nominal opportunity for vital stakeholder engagement and in the absence of any data to even support the need for such actions!
Monetary Threshold – Eviction for Non-payment of Rent
This recommendation would establish a permanent monetary threshold on evictions based on non-payment of rent, changing the requirements for at-fault eviction for non-payment of rent, whereby a renter could not be evicted if the amount of rent owed fell below a set dollar amount in arrears. The recommended monetary threshold would be an “amount equal to one month of the fair market rent (FMR) in the Los Angeles Metro area, an annual figure established by HUD, for 0–4-bedroom rental units, dependent on the type of rental unit occupied by the tenant.”
Based on this threshold limit in fiscal year 2023, a renter in Los Angeles would have to owe rent in the amount of $1,747 for a one-bedroom or $2,222 for a two-bedroom before they could be evicted for not paying rent.
As if the City’s rental housing providers have not endured enough challenges in collecting rent due for the last several years as a result of City mandates, they are now contemplating establishing even more permanent roadblocks along the path for housing providers seeking to collect rent owed!
Relocation Fees Following a Specified Rent Increase
This recommendation would impose new significant relocation fee requirements on housing providers of newer buildings requiring that the housing provider pay an amount equal to “three (3) times the fair market rent (FMR) in the Los Angeles Metro area…for a rental unit of a similar size, plus $1,411, in moving costs", when a renter moves out after receiving a large rent increase. The proposed amount of what would be deemed a large rent increase would be exceeding the Consumer Price Index (CPI) plus 5% within a 12-month period, or 10%, whichever is lower. These relocation fees would have to be paid before the renter moves out of the unit.
To review the full details of the LAHD report, please click on the button below: