Redwood City initiative seeks rent control on November ballot

Should the ordinance pass, landlords would have to obey the rent cap but could petition for higher rent increases if operating expenses necessitate it. Single family homes, condos and all new units built since 1995 would be exempt; the focus is on stabilizing existing multifamily properties. 

It also bolsters tenant protections that build upon Redwood City’s recently approved Tenant Protection Ordinance. The city’s ordinance was placed on hold last time Faith in Action tried to get the effort on the ballot, but was approved by councilmembers in October 2025. The Fair and Affordable Housing Ordinance, for example, would require landlords to pay up to $12,000 for relocation assistance, compared to the current city approved relocation assistance equal to one month’s rent, or more in special circumstances. 

“We know that everyone needs a safe and dignified home to live in and the need is greater than ever,” Jaeckel said. “We learned a lot from the previous go around and we feel more confident in the process.”

The largest opponent to the ordinance, as expressed last time the initiative was brought forward, is from the San Mateo County Association of Realtors and the California Apartment Association, which have both adamantly opposed any rent control measures. 

SAMCAR opposes rent control because it “discourages investment and reduces housing supply, ultimately making affordability worse for the entire community,” Executive Officer Alane Gilbrech said in a statement Wednesday. 

“We advocate for increasing production and targeted support rather than burdensome regulations,” Gilbrech said. “Our focus remains on practical solutions that protect property rights and foster a sustainable market for both tenants and small housing providers.”

Gathering signatures

Two years ago, the organization gathered 6,395 signatures to submit to the city clerk, but a review by the Chief Elections Office determined many were not registered voters within the city’s jurisdiction. 

Last time, the simple desire to get the initiative on the ballot made everyone interested sign the petition, and “people were just excited to sign on,” Jaeckel said. 

This time around, volunteers gathered even more signatures and made sure residents lived within the bounds of Redwood City, carrying maps around as they went door to door. Unincorporated areas closely bordering the city — which also are in desperate need of rent control, Jaeckel said — cannot be represented in the city’s initiative. 

Based on the relevant data from the Chief Elections Office, the initiative needed at least 10% of the 45,059 registered voters in the city, or at least 4,506 signatures, City Clerk Yessika Castro said. 

On Wednesday, Castro and her team went through each signed paper to count the amount of completed signatures. After a couple hours, there were enough signatures counted to submit for further review.

More than 85 volunteers with Faith in Action gathered signatures through tabling events and knocking on doors. The support from the community was immense and, in some ways, Faith in Action has campaigned for more than two years to get folks on board. Momentum never ceased after the attempt in 2024 failed, volunteer Martha Beetley said. 

“When it wasn’t successful last time we just knew we were going to try again,” Beetley said. “There wasn’t much of a pause, it was just realizing we have more work to do. ... It was maybe a stumble but it wasn’t anything that was going to stop us.” 

Getting residents on board wasn’t a terribly difficult task, Beetley said. 

“Most people accept the fact that our community will be stronger if everyone is safe, well fed, well sheltered and can stay here,” Beetley said. 

The need for solutions to address the cost of living, expensive housing and insufficient amount of housing has only been exacerbated in recent years, Jaeckel said, making it all the more necessary to push forward with the ordinance. 

“There was no pause in that need and there was no pause in our response,” Jaeckel said. 

A report authored by Urban Habitat — an organization advancing equitable policies for low-income communities of color in the Bay Area — found rents in units eligible to be rent stabilized have increased 56% in the last 15 years. 

More than 40,000 people could have increased housing stability through the just cause and anti-harassment protections proposed, and more than 22,000 could be protected be rent stabilization and be more able to afford to stay in the city. Currently, 2 in 3 low-income families are paying more than half of their income on housing, the report reads. 

In 2019, the governor signed the California Tenant Protection Act of 2019, which caps annual rent increases at 5% plus local inflation, or 10% total, whichever is lower, for many residential properties older than 15 years.

The San Mateo County Elections Office has 30 business days to certify the signatures.