Maywood City Council Adopts Urgency Ordinance Prohibiting All Rent Increases for 60 Days
At a special meeting on February 6, 2023, announced last-minute, the Maywood City Council unanimously adopted an urgency ordinance, effective immediately through April 7th, prohibiting residential rent increases for 60 days, with the ability to extend. This ordinance applies to existing residential renters whose tenancy began on or before February 6th, 2023. The ordinance also includes a petition process for housing providers who believe they are not receiving a fair and reasonable return. The 60-day period will be used by City Staff to conduct more studies and present a rent stabilization program. Click below to access the full ordinance draft and the staff report:
The staff report provided no data or other factual evidence suggesting that rental rates in Maywood had suddenly changed significantly enough to justify this urgency ordinance. Instead, it appears that the decision to bring forward this proposal as an urgency ordinance was merely an attempt to stifle opposition and severely limit public input. Council Members Heber Marquez and Eddie De La Riva made only general remarks against rental housing providers without any specific facts or data to support them during the meeting. No attempts at actual engagement with rental housing providers or the apartment Association of Greater Los Angeles (AAGLA) were made by the City prior to or during the meeting.
AAGLA will engage with our members in Maywood and hold discussions with Maywood City Council members to attempt to ascertain why the City believes a rent stabilization ordinance is necessary in Maywood at this time and work towards other solutions that would support renters (such as direct subsidies from the City) without severely damaging rental housing providers. We will continue to keep our members informed as this issue progresses.
This article is for informational purposes only. If you have any questions regarding your property or specific tenancies and the requirements of any local law changes described herein, please consult with an attorney.