San Mateo talks tenant protections

The San Mateo City Council is exploring further tenant protections through a rental registry and stricter eviction policies, despite property owners’ concerns about privacy and increased regulations.

The council directed staff at its Aug. 15 meeting to get more data and assess community needs to address its priority of strengthening tenant protections.

Councilmember Amourence Lee said creating a comprehensive data approach to address community issues of renting and housing was the first step to creating a protection policy.

“We all need to get on the same page about working with a clear set of facts,” Lee said. “We have an obligation to the city and every resident to work with full information, and that’s what I think this effort is about.”

The potential added layer of local protections would build on Assembly Bill 1482, the Tenant Protection Act, which limits rent increases statewide to 5% per year, plus any rise in the consumer price index, which cannot exceed 10%. The council wants to address holes in the law, with further limits on terminating a residential tenancy, more relocation assistance amounts, or offering more tenant protections. Potential options include requiring relocation payments for tenants, expanding those payments from one month to three months, limiting renovation evictions and establishing a rental registry to track rents and evictions citywide. State law does not require landlords to give those evicted by renovations the right to return, either at the previous or increased rent, something the council is considering changing. City staff said any of the measures would take a year to happen.

Mayor Rick Bonilla wanted more than one month of relocation payments, which is what occurs under AB 1482. He also suggested closing the loophole where property owners claim they are doing substantial renovations without taking out a permit.

“Substantial renovations should need to be substantiated,” Bonilla said.

Bonilla and Lee cited current data about the housing crisis to show the issue’s importance and how it can galvanize action. Bonilla said the Legal Aid Society of San Mateo County documented 39 county eviction cases in May, 30 in June and 41 in July. Lee noted San Mateo County had seen a sharp increase in homelessness, with 2020 data showing almost 2,000 homeless residents, an increase from the 2019 count of 1,500.

“These numbers represent the tip of the iceberg,” Bonilla said. “These are the cases that actually went and were filed. Most tenants just leave.”

While increased tenant protections have proponents, many speakers at the Aug. 15 meeting raised concerns about how it would affect property owners. Speakers, like representatives from the San Mateo County Association of Realtors, asked the council to take a step back from what they perceive as costly and burdensome regulations and that expose personal data through a rental registry. Jeff LaMont, a real estate broker with Coldwell Banker Realty who owns property in San Mateo, was surprised policy was being considered without upfront data and community outreach, particularly given previous voter measures on the issue.

“It’s an invasion of privacy, and I think tenants and homeowners, property providers, are going to push back hard on this,” LaMont said. “Rental registry is a horrible idea.”

San Mateo has no rent control ordinance, with the city’s voters recently siding with property owners. The most recent attempt to address the issue was a 2016 ballot initiative called Measure Q. It called for a rent control commission, limits on rent increases and increased landlord requirements. The measure failed to pass a simple majority, with 60% voting against it.

However, the state may play a critical role in policy moving forward. The 2023-2031 Housing Element calls for tenant protection policies and includes policy goals around examining a rental registry option, relocation and right to return policies in eviction cases. The state desires more tenant protections in housing elements and has communicated to the city it wants to see it as a goal, city staff said. The draft housing element was submitted to the state in July and is under state review until September. Councilmember Joe Goethals wanted to keep all options on the table given the state’s position, asking staff for more data and outreach from the state and community.

“It’s very clear HCD wants this in our housing element, and the housing element is one of the duties of the council,” Goethals said. “We have to get our housing element approved.”

Deputy Mayor Diane Papan wanted more data to determine what policy path the city should go down. She noted there had been unprecedented times for tenant protections, citing rent control, just cause eviction protections, a state ban on eviction moratoriums and renter assistance during the pandemic.

“I really want to get back out in the field and find out what’s happening,” Papan said. “I recognize that HCD would like to see tenant protections in our housing element, but I also want to be very conscious that we adopt policies to address what’s happening out there.”

curtis@smdailyjournal.com

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