LA County extends temporary rent control measure, expands scope

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors is extending and expanding its temporary rent control ordinance on unincorporated communities.

The board voted to extend the temporary 3 percent cap increase landlords can charge, according to Curbed. The measure was set to expire in June and now will extend through the end of the year, according to the report. The extension is meant to buy time for the county to draw up a permanent measure.

The board also expanded its “just cause” eviction to single-family rentals as well, not just those in multifamily buildings. That means landlords cannot evict tenants without a reason that qualifies under the ordinance, such as failure to pay rent or otherwise violating the terms of the lease.

The county approved the cap and a suite of other measures in November, shortly after voters statewide rejected Proposition 10, a measure that would have allowed sweeping new rent control laws in California.

The county board, like all lawmakers statewide, is limited to regulating units built before 1995 by the Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act, passed that year. If passed, Proposition 10 would have repealed the law, opening the door to rent control.

Landlords in L.A. County argue the board is going against that vote with its temporary measures. There’s also evidence that the measures are scaring off investors who specifically bought in unincorporated areas of the county because there was no rent control there.

The county isn’t the only jurisdiction considering new rent regulations. Glendale and Beverly Hills have both instituted new ordinances in recent months. Inglewood and Long Beach are considering measures of their own. [Curbed] — Dennis Lynch