Remember AB 1482? The Attorney General's office does, vows to enforce excessive rent hikes
California's top cop says his office is paying attention to exorbitant rent increases and arbitrary evictions.
In 2020, our law office thought we were going to invest a lot of time and energy in educating our community about the Tenant Protection Act of 2019 (AB 1482) but then COVID hit and the news of this state law was largely drowned out.
We were hopscotching from one eviction moratorium to the next and trying to make sense of government edicts that came at a dizzying pace. What we reported on Monday could have become obsolete on Wednesday.
Now that eviction moratoriums are finally winding down, we need to understand that the end of eviction moratoriums is not the end of tenant protections, and if a property is not located in a jurisdiction with more rigorous tenant protections - say, San Francisco, Oakland, Berkeley, incorporated parts of San Leandro, and other locales - housing providers must still comply with statewide rent and eviction controls.
After a pattern of impermissible rent increases and alleged violations of displacing residents without just cause, one San Jose-based developer and property manager learned this the hard way.
Concluding a lengthy investigation, Attorney General Rob Bonta announced the state's first enforcement of AB 1482 with a warning that, while it is a first for his office, it will not be the last.
Rent increase caps
As a refresher, state law caps annual rent increases at 5% plus the percentage change in the cost of living (CPI), but never greater than 10%. Exemptions such as single-family homes and condos apply - consult an attorney.
Given rampant inflation, for rent increases that take effect on or after August 1, 2023, housing providers in Alameda and Contra Costa Counties are looking at an allowable rent increase of 9.2%, provided that there is not a more restrictive local ordinance.
Take the gift that is given to you
For those owners who are only subject to statewide rent and eviction controls spelled out by AB 1482, please understand that you have been dealt a relatively easy regulatory regime to follow and you are the envy of landlords in some rent-controlled jurisdictions with a more onerous set of rules to follow.
Whether it is higher rent increases allowed, less relocation payments required in no-fault evictions, and other aspects of AB 1482, it is much more preferable for owners to have their properties enveloped by state law, versus local ordinances.
Don't blow it.
Don't squander this opportunity or test the limits. When AB 1482 went into effect, there was a question of how this law would be enforced. We said early on that there is no statewide rent board, but that violations of the law would be litigated in court whenever a dispute arises.
This has come to pass.
Whenever a tenant faces potential displacement or there is an exorbitant rent hike, their attorneys - oftentimes from local legal aid organizations - will find landlording mistakes as if by a heat-seeking missile and use these mistakes as a defense in an unlawful detainer (eviction) action.
Bornstein Law has been diligent in educating our community on the requirements of state law, but now that California's top cop has become proactive in cracking down on violators, it is time for those of you who didn't get the memo to now take heed.