What is the state of Alameda County for housing providers in light of new proposals and a change in leadership?

To answer this and other questions, we turned to Paul Taylor, who heads the Rental Housing Association of Alameda County.

With an election cycle behind us, perhaps some common sense solutions can be struck.

I'm curious about the composition of the Alameda County Board of Supervisors. We had two tragic deaths and our first choice to fill their shoes was Chris Moore, who got an appreciable number of votes, he raised awareness for public safety but didn’t cross the finish line.

Now Nikki Bas is in the forefront, clearly someone who falls squarely on the side of tenants. Do you see any shift in the policies coming our way in a newly formed legislative body?

Well, I think the body has changed dramatically with us. You alluded to the passing of Wilma and Richard and during that time, they had the majority and the board president would have been Keith Carson. Heretofore, the board ensured that renters’ advocates had their way - they were codifying legislation that would make it difficult for housing providers so what housing providers ended up with was a great Supervisor in Lena Tam.

Tam was a longshot. She didn’t receive support from the Democratic Committee but she still persevered and then we welcomed Elisa Marquez. She is the District 2 Supervisor who took Richard’s place, and the good thing about Elisa is that she’s willing to listen and keep an open mind.

David Haubert has been our chief benefactor and when I first came to Alameda County, he was the first supervisor I ran into and his mantra has always been the protracted eviction moratorium was illegal and that every housing provider should get every penny back. Supervisor Miley can be characterized as a moderate, and Lena Tam has voted differently than her predecessor in terms of helping housing providers, so I think we’re in good shape.

Unfortunately, as you indicated, Chris Moore didn’t make it but the good thing about that is even though Nikki Fortuna Bas made it, I think she only won by 13 points and I think that’s going to change in the general election. I know there are groups in Oakland right now that are trying to have her recalled, so she’s by no means guaranteed to be a shoo-in.

By all accounts, Chris Moore was a change agent and a civic leader, not just another politician. We are confident his message of prioritizing public safety will be long-lived in changing the public discourse in these troubling times.

Chang agent. The County missed the opportunity to send a civic leader, not just another politician.

There’s been chatter about the county “making landlords whole” and paying for COVID-related rent debt, but thus far, no tangible results, no checks in the mail.

I’m wondering if there’s any progress on that front, in terms of allocating, or shall I say diverting funds from My Eden’s Voice and other groups so that financial assistance is distributed evenly among landlords and tenants.

Well, I think the body has changed dramatically with us. You alluded to the passing of Wilma and Richard and during that time, they had the majority and the board president would have been Keith Carson. Heretofore, the board ensured that renters’ advocates had their way - they were codifying legislation that would make it difficult for housing providers so what housing providers ended up with was a great Supervisor in Lena Tam.

Tam was a longshot. She didn’t receive support from the Democratic Committee but she still persevered and then we welcomed Elisa Marquez. She is the District 2 Supervisor who took Richard’s place, and the good thing about Elisa is that she’s willing to listen and keep an open mind.

David Haubert has been our chief benefactor and when I first came to Alameda County, he was the first supervisor I ran into and his mantra has always been the protracted eviction moratorium was illegal and that every housing provider should get every penny back. Supervisor Miley can be characterized as a moderate, and Lena Tam has voted differently than her predecessor in terms of helping housing providers, so I think we’re in good shape.

Unfortunately, as you indicated, Chris Moore didn’t make it but the good thing about that is even though Nikki Fortuna Bas made it, I think she only won by 13 points and I think that’s going to change in the general election. I know there are groups in Oakland right now that are trying to have her recalled, so she’s by no means guaranteed to be a shoo-in.

Is there any legitimate reform on the way for CDA or are they just set in their old ways? Any chance that the inertia will be broken up?

I think so, and I think it might have been done earlier if it wasn’t for the upcoming elections that are now behind us, but that’s a great question. The CDA and HCD, have always been pro-tenant without much regard to the plight of housing providers, and I think that’s going to change because they get their directives from the Board of Supervisors. Now that the elections are over, we’ll likely see meaningful change.

Thus far, tenant advocacy groups have received a ton of governmental funds without much oversight, but the status quo is expected to change.

Oakland has become a bastion of tenant protections, and they seemingly are spreading elsewhere, to suburbia and not urban centers traditionally associated with tenant activism. After initially giving the nod to new rent control, Concord lawmakers did an about-face and considered putting this into the laps of voters in November. What are some of the other battle lines being drawn in unincorporated areas of Alameda County?

If you are in an area that has more homeownership than rentals, you’re not going to be able to craft a lot of these horrifying ordinances. Concord is always a city that every year, without fail, wants to come up with draconian rules that basically disadvantage home providers and we’re always keeping an eye on Hayward. There’s an undercurrent there that if not kept in check, will craft further landlording rules.

We feel reasonably comfortable in Fremont, but as you know, tenants’ advocates are relentless and there will always be crackpot measures being proposed that will harm landlords and reduce the housing stock.