DATE: May 9, 2019
TO: Homelessness-Housing Task Force
FROM: Deputy City Manager
SUBJECT
Title
Consider Recommendations to the City Council Regarding Vacancy Decontrol Provisions within the Residential Rent Stabilization Ordinance
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RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
That the Homelessness-Housing Task Force (HHTF) receives and reviews the consultant's report regarding the vacancy decontrol provisions within the Residential Rent Stabilization Ordinance (RRSO) and considers a recommendation to Council on the decontrol provisions.
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SUMMARY
The purpose of this report is to solicit direction from the HHTF regarding recommended amendments to the RRSO regarding permanent vacancy decontrol provisions. On February 19, 2019, the City Council demonstrated support for eliminating vacancy decontrol (Section 8) from the RRSO; however, there was also support for waiting for the findings from consultant, Management Partners, hired to evaluate the vacancy decontrol process. For clarification, the elimination of permanent decontrol would not interfere with a landlord's right to increase rents to market rate once a tenant voluntarily vacates a unit as required by state law.
Management Partners has concluded its report, which is included as Attachment II. Some of the key findings include:
1. Many of the housing units subject to the City's rent control ordinance are already decontrolled, leaving a very small number subject to the rent stabilization policies of the ordinance;
2. The City has historically viewed its role as a repository of decontrol applications as opposed to arbitrator of vacancy decontrol decisions;
3. Decontrol applications included the basic information required under the terms of the decontrol ordinance, yet applicants were not always required to provide receipts or other substantiation of improvements implemented; and
4. The current and historic improvement thresholds that allow a unit to qualify for v...
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