Help Stop the Chula Vista Tenant Protection Ordinance

The Residential Landlord & Tenant Ordinance is being voted on by the Chula City Council this coming Tuesday, October 25 at 5 p.m. SCRHA remains opposed to the ordinance and is concerned with the unintended consequences. We need you to make your voice heard. Attend the hearing and ask the council to reject the ordinance. The ordinance proposes to make no-fault termination of tenancy more complicated and costly for housing providers. It will also add to the list of items considered tenant harassment and add potential criminal penalties for violations of the ordinance. Summary of Ordinance: No-Fault Just Cause Termination of Tenancy (Substantial Remodel/Withdrawal from Market/Total Demolition) - Increased relocation assistance equivalent to 2-3 months of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Small Area Fair Market Rent for the zip code of the unit. - Expanded definition of Substantial Remodel, including the requirement that improvements total at least $40 per square foot and the unit needs to be vacant for 60 days. - First right of refusal for the previous tenant once rehab is complete or unit returns to market. - Additional disclosures and noticing requirements. Anti-Harassment/Retaliation - Refines harassment and retaliation behaviors and the term “quiet use and enjoyment” Remedies and City Enforcement - Provides that the City may take enforcement action, including pursuing administrative action, civil action, and criminal prosecution. These are just the highlights. Click here to read the entire ordinance! Suggest talking points: - The relocation framework will discourage housing providers from keeping rents below market or not taking the max rent increase each year. The amount should be based on contract rent so it is not punitive to property owners who choose to keep rents low. - The limitations on substantial remodels ignore the needs of aging housing stock in the city. By requiring the work take at least 60 days, housing providers will have to do more work and keep a unit off the market longer than needed. This will hurt people looking for housing. - The ordinance is complicated and cumbersome, and requires housing providers to send copies of all notices to the city. - Laws and remedies already exist that protect against bad actors; this ordinance is a broad-brush approach that will impact all rental providers. - The harassment section is one-sided and does nothing to protect housing providers from the same treatment.