Rent control expansion is a prime option for renters throughout California

Rent control expansion is a prime option for renters throughout California

By Lynda Carson - January 9, 2016

Oakland - The renters of California and their supporters are struggling against the Costa Hawkins Act which restricts cities in California from implementing strong rent control measures, as a way to protect renters in housing that was built after 1995.

Abolishing the Costa Hawkins Act and the Ellis Act will help to end homelessness, will stabilize our communities, and will help to protect working class families throughout California.

Landlord lobbyist Greg McConnell of 696 Blue Spruce Dr., in Danville, claims that he was the diabolical mastermind behind the Costa Hawkins Act, and that he led the attack on renters so landlords would have the option to exploit renters to the maximum. The Costa Hawkins Act needs to be abolished immediately to end homelessness, stabilize communities, and stop the maximum exploitation of renters throughout California.

Click on link below for more about landlord lobbyist Gregg McConnell, to see why he was disbarred for sometime in the District of Columbia, as a result of his past unlawful activities…

http://law.justia.com/cases/district-of-columbia/court-of-appeals/1995/94-bg-1395-6.html

As recent as January 5, Gregg McConnell was one of the leading landlord lobbyists at an Alameda City Council meeting to speak out in opposition to much needed renter protections for the renters of Alameda, being promoted by the Alameda Renters Coalition. McConnell spoke out against rent control, and just cause eviction protections that are needed to end homelessness, stabilize families, and stop no-cause evictions in Alameda.

That evening on January 5, the Alameda City Council took their working orders from Gregg McConnell, landlord Donald W. Lindsey, and Joshua Howard of the California Apartment Association (CAA), and ignored the proposals of the renters, and the Alameda Renters Coalition, needed to support an ordinance that will protect the renters with rent control, and just cause eviction protections.

The Alameda City Council sold out the renters after Gregg McConnell, Alameda landlord Donald W. Lindsey, and Joshua Howard of the California Apartment Association (CAA), denounced renter protections for the tenants of Alameda, including rent control and just cause eviction protections. The council is presently focused on passing weak tenant protections that are inadequate, and do not include rent control, or just cause eviction protections.

Click on the link below for more about Alameda landlord Donald W. Lindsey, who opposes rent control, and just cause eviction protections…

http://www2.dre.ca.gov/PublicASP/displayonlinedocument.asp?filing=H11916SF

Renters and tenant advocates throughout California have the Costa Hawkins Act and the Ellis Act on their list of some of the major unfair laws that need to be abolished during the 2016 legislative session.

With the support of San Francisco Supervisor Aaron Peskin of San Francisco, Senator Mark Leno, D-San Francisco, Tenants Together, Causa Justa/Just Cause, the Alameda Renters Coalition and other tenant activists throughout California, the struggle to end the Costa Hawkins Act and the Ellis Act needs to continue as a way to expand renter protections against greedy landlords.

Dismantling the Costa Hawkins Act and the Ellis Act, will help to end homelessness, will stabilize our communities, and will help to protect working class families during 2016, and beyond.

The corrupting influence of the California Apartment Association (CAA) http://tinyurl.com/j42pqqv , and the California Association of Realtors (CAR) http://tinyurl.com/zb3pslr , are just a few of the nonprofit organizations that exist to corrupt the state legislature and city councils across the state, in the effort to protect greedy landlords throughout California, and their efforts to exploit renters to the maximum.

As a direct result of the merciless greed of the landlords in California, including the corrupting influence of the CAA and CAR, a new survey of rents all across the nation reveals that California totally outpaced the nation when it comes to rent hikes during 2015, and that a housing crisis exists throughout much of California.


Rent Hikes In California Have Outpaced The National Average


Rent hikes in California have outpaced the national average during every month of 2015, according to AppartmentList.com - https://www.apartmentlist.com/rentonomics/california-rent-data/ .

Of the ten most expensive cities in California, San Francisco is at the top of the list followed by Santa Monica, Marina Del Rey, Palo Alto, West Hollywood, Berkeley, Pacifica, San Mateo, San Rafael, and Foster City.


Rents In Oakland Have Almost Doubled Since 2011


Another recent survey also reveals that the fair market rents in Oakland have almost doubled since 2011. Additionally, in the top ten cities throughout the nation with the greatest rent increases during recent years, Oakland tops the list according to Smartasset.com, surpassing San Francisco, New York City, San Jose, Houston, New Orleans, Los Angeles, Denver, Colorado Springs, and Chicago.

Click below for more…

https://smartasset.com/mortgage/top-10-cities-largest-rent-increases

Without any real rent control in town, renters are faced with a landlord friendly rent stabilization program to take their chances with. This is because the politicians in Oakland have sold them out years ago, and it is not too likely that the landlord friendly politicians are going to push for a real rent control program, any time soon.

Renters and tenant activists are being urged to contact Senator Mark Leno at; http://sd11.senate.ca.gov/contact , to urge him to promote legislation to bring an end to the Costa Hawkins Act and the Ellis Act, as a way to end homelessness, stabilize our communities, and to help protect the working class families of California during 2016, and beyond, from greedy landlords.

The expansion of rent control and just cause eviction protections are the only way to protect the renters of California from greedy landlords, and the corrupting influence of the California Apartment Association, and the California Realtors Association.

Lynda Carson may be reached at tenantsrule [at] yahoo.com