Rent & Eviction Control Guide / Antioch
In an earlier article on the spread of rent control throughout the Bay Area, we said that places not traditionally associated with tenant activism have begun to debate or enact greater tenant protections. Antioch is the latest community to join the wave.
In a 3-2 vote, the Antioch City Council passed a rent stabilization ordinance that caps rent increases at 3%, or 60& of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) in the San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward Area, whichever is less. The ordinance rolls back the date the rules apply to Aug. 23, so landlords will not be able to raise rents before the regulations go into effect 30 days from passage.
The ordinance, however, permits owners to petition the City of Antioch to increase the rent in excess of these limits.
Landlords can only raise the rent once in a twelve-month period and like other Bay Area ordinances, Antioch has made it clear that rent increases shall not be effective if the landlord does not maintain the unit in habitable condition or fails to make repairs after being ordered to do so by the city or the court.
Mayor Lamar Thorpe gave an ominous warning that more tenant protections are in the offing, telling a news outlet that "this is the first part of our overall renter's protections - rent control - that I've proposed," noting that just cause and anti-tenant harassment policies will come next.
Notable exemptions to Antioch Rent Control
Single-family homes and condominiums are not subject to the new regulatory regime. Has the landlord or their immediate family occupied a unit as a principal place of residence at the beginning of the tenancy and continues to be in occupancy? If so, the property is exempt. The same is true if a unit within a dwelling unit is shared with the landlord, as the landlord's principal residence, and the landlord shares a bathroom or kitchen with the tenant.
Documentation requirements
Upon inception of the tenancy, renters must be notified in writing that the tenancy is regulated by the ordinance, that the tenant has a right to submit a complaint to the city, and that in the event the landlord files a Fair Return Petition, the tenant has the right to respond. Finally, no rent increase is valid until the requirements of the ordinance have been met.
