The San Leandro City Council covered two items involving renters in the city.
The first was approving the rent review for this year. The rent review board was formed in 2001 and consisted of landlords and tenants who helped resolve rental disputes.
This past year they partnered with Eden Council for Hope and Opportunity (ECHO) Housing, a fair housing agency, to assist with tenant and landlord disagreements. Most of the disputes were resolved by the rent review board. Three cases ended with the landlord revising their rent increase notice after speaking with ECHO Housing and the rent review board.
The city council is one step closer to establishing a rent control ordinance and program. The ordinance would create a program where the cost of rent remains as low as possible, to start in Jan. 2027. The council confirmed on Dec. 15 that the ordinance would include a 3% rent cap and a base rent based on this year’s rent amount. According to the draft ordinance, a base rent is the maximum allowable rent a landlord can require. Applying the base rent based on this year’s rent gives the tenant protection from rental increases.
The next step for the council is to approve a first reading of the ordinance during the Jan. 12 city council meeting. The city will then need to approve a rent registry software vendor contract during the Jan. 20 council meeting.
The program would include staff working on the rent registry, outreach and enforcement. The city plans to take out a loan from the general fund with a payback period of three to six years. The city plans to make money from the program through the rental registry, annual fees, enforcement and late fees that would be paid by the landlord.
During the city council meeting, a woman speaking for a man with Parkinson’s disease said online, “I urge you to approve the rent stabilization ordinance because it is good public policy. We need to have housing that provides people with the ability to build neighborhoods that are safe and vibrant. Rent stabilization creates stable neighborhoods and communities.”
Another person said, “Now we’re faced with a wrench in the works, oh my god, the costs. And what it means for housing to be a priority in the city of San Leandro is that you pay for it. This is an essential service.” He said there are other funding sources the city can use to pay for the program instead of taking out a loan.
Landlords will be paying a lot of fees for the rent control program. A person representing mom-and-pop housing agencies said, “Mom-and-pop owners, they are usually hands-on, and they have to do a lot of work. More regulation, and less return on investment, it just doesn’t pencil out. They’ll leave the market…So fewer housing availability for the renters. It’s not gonna help anybody.”
A woman gave a public comment countering the argument about the costly fees. She said, “I do not believe this is going to affect any mom-and-pop’s actual ability to stay in business. They’ve invested in the property, and are they just going to leave it empty? That’s not gonna bring them any income either.”
