Rent Protection for Renters Not Covered by Municipal Rent Control - AB 1482

In January 2020, AB 1482 (or The Tenant Protection Act of 2019) was enacted to regulate rents for renters in California who are not covered by municipal rent control. 

Tenants in rental units that are exempt from AB 1482 were supposed to receive a "Notice of Exemption" from their landlord in 2020. If tenants did not receive this Notice, it is incumbent upon the tenant to proactively check and determine if their unit is covered or exempt from AB 1482. (See sidebar to this blog under "AB 1482" for more information about this state law.)

Each year, AB 1482 allows rent increases of 5% plus the CPI for the region or 10% whichever is lower for the 12-month period August 1 and ending July 31. Only one rent increase is allowed every 12-months and any rent increase requires advance written notice.

This year, beginning August 1, 2022 and ending July 31, 2023, the state rent cap is 10%, which is 5% plus 5%, the regional CPI for the San Francisco Bay Area. For more information about the regional CPI, visit California’s Department of Industrial Relations here.

Oakland Joins Berkeley and Richmond and Enacts a Rent Registry Program

When landlord tenant relations go sour in Oakland, one of the first questions for a tenant to ask is “Is my unit covered by the Oakland Rent Adjustment program?” One would think that answering that question is simple, but that really isn’t so.

While at the inception of tenancy, a landlord is required to also issue the Oakland RAP notice advising the tenant that their unit is covered by rent control, in some cases, the landlord neglects to issue the notice. In cases where the RAP notice has not been issued, the tenant then has to determine the age of the building and research municipal laws to determine if the age and the number of units in the building qualify the building to be covered by rent control. They can also consult the rent board for assistance all of which takes time.

However, in Berkeley and Richmond, landlords are required to register each rent unit covered by the municipal rent control ordinance. Failure to register rental units is met with financial penalties. All a tenant or prospective tenant needs to do is to check the rent registry (or consult the rent board if they suspect that the landlord failed to register their rental unit.)

Oakland has a population of about 423,000 persons and about 60% of its residents are renters. Whether pushed by the pandemic or the result of progressive city council members, a new program manager, and public pressure, or all of these combined, the creation of rent registry in Oakland was just approved by the City Council.

Beginning March 1, 2023, landlords will be required to register each rental unit covered by the Oakland Rent Adjustment Program, with the city. Such information as the:

• Address of each rental unit;
• Name, address and contact information of the Owner(s);
• Name, address, and contact information of the Property Manager(s);
• Name(s) of the tenant(s), their email address(es);
• Start date of the tenancy and the initial rental rate;
• Effective data of the last rent increase for each rental unit; and
• Amount of the security deposit.

If the landlord fails to timely register the rental units, a financial penalty will be imposed.

If the landlord fails to register the rental units at all, the landlord will not be able to file or to respond to a tenant petition and their failure to register the rental unit will act as an affirmative defense to eviction.

While the rent registry information will be public, the information will be limited to the "bare bones" to protect the privacy of the owner and the tenants. A public information request will reveal more information but private information will be redacted.

It's high time for Oakland to develop a rent registry and I, for one, would like to thank the City Council for taking this progressive action.

Oakland Provides Relief to Tenants, Capping Rent Increases at 3%

The pandemic brought significant change to our lives, including mine. Last year, I learned about the terminal illness of a family member whose care I have become involved in. Thus, as I have become adjusted to the role of “care giver,” I am finding my way back to tenant advocacy and am happy to report positive changes in Oakland municipal law.

I understand that landlords have been hard hit, too, with delays in rental assistance from the state’s Housing is Key program and increased costs (i.e., EBMUD, etc.). But, when I learned about Oakland’s proposed 6.7% rent increase adjustment, I was shocked and wondered how Oakland’s AGA could be so different from Berkeley and San Francisco.

Berkeley’s AGA for 2022 is 2.1%. See: https://rentboard.berkeleyca.gov/rights-responsibilities/rent-levels/annual-general-adjustment

San Francisco’s AGA for 2022 is 2.3% (Jan. 2021 to Dec. 2021) See: https://sfrb.org/topic-no-051-years-annual-allowable-increase#:~:text=The%20annual%20allowable%20increase%20amount%20effective%20March%201%2C%202021%20through,San%20Francisco%20Rent%20Board's%20jurisdiction.

The difference has to do both with the time period used from the Consumer Price Index (CPI) and the calculation. As reported in a recent City Council meeting, Oakland’s CPI calculation was negotiated by the City in 2002 and weighed the interests of landlords and tenants. But, the pandemic, and its aftermath, has shaken up all of our lives and, given public outcry, has stimulated the City to re-examine the 6.7% rent increase adjustment and how it is derived. I am happy to report that the calculation has been changed and rent increases capped at 3.0% to apply on August 1 versus July 1, 2022. Applicable increases are also guided by the Oakland Eviction Moratorium which is still in effect, is tied to the Local Health Emergency, and is being challenged in the court.

OLD NEWS:

On 2/29/2020, I reported the following on this blog, 

“As guided by O.M.C. 8.22.070B(3):

Beginning in 2002, the CPI Rent Adjustment is the average of the percentage increase in the ‘CPI—All items’ and the ‘CPI—Less shelter’ for the twelve (12) month period starting on March 1 of each calendar year and ending on the last day of February of the following calendar year calculated to the nearest one tenth of one percent."

The All Item Index CPI for the Bay area is 3.53% while the All Items Less Shelter Index is 3.54%.

The data for these calculations takes some time to locate on the U.S. Bureau of Labor statistics website but if one visits the CPI database page and selects one-screen data search and uses non-seasonally adjusted data, one can secure the relevant statistics.

                  CPI All Items All Items Less Shelter

Feb. 2018  281,308         240,742
Feb. 2019  291,227         249,269
Change          9,919            8,827
% Change      3.53%           3.54%

Avg. 3.53%

Applying rounding principles, one would round down to 3.5% which is the percent allowable rent increase published by the Oakland Rent Adjustment Program for July 2019.

See: https://www.bls.gov/cpi/data.htm

NEW NEWS:

On 5/31/22, Oakland proposed, and the City Council enacted, a major change in the CPI as follows:

1) the CPI time period used will now date from April 2021 to April 2022,

2) only the "All Items CPI" for the San Francisco – Hayward-Oakland western region will apply, and

3) Oakland will use 60% of the CPI or a 3% cap, whichever is lower.

The current CPI is 5% and 60% of that is 3%. (NOTE: The reason for the continued difference between Oakland, San Francisco and Berkeley is the time period chosen to calculate the CPI increase.)

This new rent adjustment calculation has been adopted by the City and, notably, is now lower than the allowable CPI rent adjustment increases in 2019 and 2020.

For more information, see: https://www.oaklandca.gov/news/2021/annual-allowable-rent-increase-announced

City Councilperson Carol Fife sponsored the amendment. She is the founder of ACCE, a state-wide tenants’ rights organization. All but one City Councilperson voted in favor of the amendment. Oakland Tenants Union also backed the CPI revision as well as other tenants’ rights organizations.

The City advised Landlords about other avenues available to increase rent in non-pandemic circumstances which includes 1) capital improvements, and 2) fair market return. A small property owner’s workshop will be offered by the City on July 13, 2022.

Tenants may register for a Tenants’ Workshop which is occurring on June 22, 2022. 

For more information about these workshops, see: https://www.oaklandca.gov/resources/rent-adjustment-program-workshops