KNOWLEDGE BASE / RENT CONTROL / SAN LEANDRO RENT CONTROL

The San Leandro Rent Review Ordinance & Tenant Relocation Assistance Ordinance

In its narrowest sense, rent and eviction controls refer to limits on how much rent landlords can charge, how often landlords can raise the rent, and enumerated reasons why a tenant can be evicted. San Leandro's iteration of tenant safeguards, however, comes in the form of mediation services, a special notice requirement when the rent is raised, and relocation assistance in certain circumstances when the tenant is evicted through no fault of his or her own.
 
Stopping short of fully-fledged rent and eviction controls, the city has created the Rent Review Board tasked with reviewing rent increases higher than 7%, or instances when the landlord has raised the rent more than once in a 12-month period.

The goal of this five-membered body – comprised of two renters, two landlords, and a neutral party -  is to encourage landlords and tenants to arrive at a mutually satisfactory resolution to proposed rent increases, and conduct a hearing, if need be, to air out the facts. In contrast to other locales like in Alameda, San Leandro's arbitration is non-binding. Read the Rent Review Ordinance here ›
 
Please consult with Bornstein Law to determine whether the rental housing unit is eligible for rent review. Regardless of the rental unit's eligibility or the rent increase amount, owners must provide a “Required Notice.”
 
A common denominator throughout Bay Area locales is mandated relocation assistance payments when tenants face steep rent hikes, or the tenant is displaced through no-fault evictions – in the vernacular of San Leandro, “landlord-caused termination.” The city's Tenant Relocation Assistance Ordinance has added protections for these vulnerable renters.
 
When landlords in San Leandro contemplate a substantial rent increase, or desire to transition tenants out of the rental unit without a “just cause,” seeking proper legal counsel is essential.