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After raising residential sewer rates last week, the city of San Carlos plans to re-evaluate how sewer bills are calculated for apartments.
The City Council agreed to consider a new pricing model for multifamily housing after CAA Tri-County voiced objections over the current pricing structure, especially in light of rising rates.
The rate is set to climb 67 percent over the next three years. The rate structure, however, does not account for the size of a residential dwelling or the impact on the sewer system.
So, bills for single-family homes that house four people will continue to mirror those for… Read More
Tagged: Utility Rates Tri-County
Sen. Mark Leno’s SB 603 would no longer require that landlords pay interest on security deposits, but his bill is still bad for the rental housing industry.
The interest-on-security-deposits provision came out after CAA’s strong lobbying activities and nearly 800 CAA members wrote opposition letters to lawmakers.
Remaining, however, are unfair penalty provisions for landlords who fail to return security deposits as required by law – no matter the rationale.
Under SB 603, a small-claims court judge would have to award penalties against the owner if the tenant successfully demonstrates that all or a portion of the deposit should have… Read More
Tagged: LegislationSecurity Deposits
Landlords don’t have to conduct extensive investigations to track down tenants who go missing when facing eviction, according to a ruling Wednesday by the Sixth Appellate District Court.
After receiving a brief from the California Apartment Association, the appellate court ruled in favor of the property owner, Stanford University, which tried but could not locate Christine Marie Ham to personally serve her with an eviction lawsuit.
Instead, Stanford mailed the paperwork — an unlawful detainer summons and complaint – to Ham’s residence and posted it on her front door. Landlords reluctantly resort to this technique, known as “nail and mail,”… Read More
Tagged: EvictionsLegal News
A CAA-opposed bill that would have encouraged jury trials in eviction cases — greatly delaying a landlord’s ability to speedily eject a nonpaying tenant — failed in the Assembly Judiciary Committee on Tuesday, May 7, and cannot return until at least next year.
AB 969 by Assemblyman Tom Ammiano, D-San Francisco, focused on cases in which a tenant claims he or she withheld rent because a landlord failed to make repairs to an apartment.
Under current law, a tenant already can use this argument in court to fight an eviction. The tenant, however, must be current on rent to do… Read More
Tagged: CourtsEvictionsLegislation
If it were the Giants vs. the A’s, we’d be headed for extra innings.
But we’re talking apartments here, and when it comes to the pace of rental revenue growth, the cities are in a dead heat for first place.
For the first quarter of 2013, Oakland and San Francisco were even for annual rent growth among the nation’s largest markets, according to propertymanagementinsider.com.
The California Apartment Association and state Sen. Jerry Hill, D-San Mateo, believe legislation spelling this out is necessary — and would help prevent all too frequent scams associated with the practice.
In addition to requiring those who offer prepaid rental listings to hold a real estate license, Hill’s SB 269 would mandate that those selling prepaid rental lists include their real estate license number on contracts with prospective tenants.
A prospective tenant might want to buy a prepaid rental list to avoid the time and hassle of searching through classified ads, scouring Craigslist, searching rental-housing websites — and even driving… Read More
For the first time in 2013, the California Apartment Association has taken official positions on a series of bills, from whether to ban smoking in multifamily complexes to a proposal that would require interest payments on security deposits.
CAA staff is continuing to analyze and debate the merits of hundreds of bills sponsored by the state Legislature.
As the CAA Legislative Steering Committee takes formal positions in the months to come, we’ll report that information in this newsletter, as well as on our blog, caapartments.org.
Here’s a rundown on CAA’s positions thus far:
Oppose: SB 603 (Leno-D) Interest on security… Read More
In California, fewer homes are for sale these days, and finding “for rent” signs can test a would-be tenant’s patience.
The news media are taking notice of these realities — and the impacts they’re having on affordability.
Both Forbes and the Huffington Post today published articles about the high cost of rental housing in California, and last week, the Sacramento Bee reported a steep decline in homes for sale.
According to the Huffington Post piece, the Golden State has the least affordable rental housing on the mainland United States. The Post cites the National Low Income Housing Coalition’s annual report.… Read More
California could become the first state in the nation to ban tobacco smoking in apartments, regardless of what tenants, landlords and local government have to say about it.
In addition to forbidding smoking inside all multifamily dwellings, Assembly Bill 746 would
prohibit the practice outside rental units — except in conspicuously marked, designated areas that meet several criteria.
Violating AB 746, an infraction, would bring a fine of up to $100. Assemblyman Marc Levine, D-San Rafael, introduced the bill Feb. 21. It’s sponsored by the American Lung Association.
The California Apartment Association has not taken a position on the bill,… Read More
Tagged: LegislationSmoking