Meeting To Reform San Jose's Rental Ordinance; Landlords To Be Held Accountable

SAN JOSE, Calif. - Aug. 3, 2015 - PRLog -- A new poll released on July 27 by EMC Research shows that 72% of San Jose residents support strengthening rent control by banning rent increases over 2% a year. Low income residents of the community are calling for the City Council to bring its policies into line with the will of the people.

Mr. Hee Duk Kang, owner of the apartment building at 1991 Story Road, is a poster child for rent reform in San Jose. A fast-moving fire on June 25 sent two children, Julio and Abigail Castaneda, to the Valley Medical Center burn unit, where Julio continues to receive care today. A city inspection immediately after the fire revealed that only three of the forty units had working smoke alarms, and the majority of the units’ stoves had to be removed due to frayed wiring that gave off sparks and caused electrical shocks to tenants. A delegation of residents filed complaints with code enforcement the following week, citing not only fire hazards but structural issues, mold, leaks, inoperable fixtures, holes, inoperable heaters, broken cabinets, lack of screens, and rodents, cockroaches, and bedbugs. Two stairways were condemned. In addition, the owner removed door latches and lights creating a security emergency in this high-crime area.

This spring, throngs of landlords testified to City Council that they could not afford to allow rent increases of below 8% a year because they would not be able to keep up with maintenance. However, Mr. Kang’s example is only one of the many landlords who disregard maintenance even when they do raise rents 8% a year. The system rewards landlords who charge the maximum rent and callously ignore the health and safety of tenants.

Mr. Kang has priors. In 1998 he was sued when a two year-old child fell off a second story balcony after he refused to repair the guardrail. Mr. Kang’s response to the accident was not to repair the building, but to report the mother to Child Protective Services. In 1991 he was sentenced to live 60 days in one of his slum apartments for attempting to bribe a building inspector.

San Jose is experiencing a rental housing crisis of historic proportions. Rents have been increasing at 10% or more every year since 2010, with no end in sight. The average two-bedroom apartment rent is now over $2500.

A quarter of San Jose renter families pay over half their income for rent, causing needless suffering, overcrowding, stress, code violations, dislocation, and often homelessness. Renters priced out of ther city are forced to commute long distances to work, clogging highways and damaging the environment and quality of life.  A recent study shows that homelessness in the region costs local governments over half a billion dollars a year.

A humanitarian crisis

Strengthening San Jose’s rent ordinance is a cost effective solution that will stabilize rents for tens of thousands of working families, seniors, people with disabilities, and others at risk of displacement. Silicon Valley has some of the highest rents in the country, yet San Jose’s existing rent ordinance is far weaker than those in other Bay Area cities that are similarly impacted. There is no legitimate reason why San Jose’s renters should be denied the same protection available in nearby communities. Watch the video here http://youtu.be/ACMAhA872dw .



The meeting will discuss the proposed changes to help bring the San Jose ordinance up to the standard set by other Bay Area cities:

1.    Reduce annual allowable rent increases from 8% to 2%.

2.    Require landlords to demonstrate just cause before terminating tenancies, as required in other large California cities

3.    Revise the current rent control ordinance to include the 10,000 units built from 1979-95.

4.    Prohibit discrimination against tenants with Section 8 housing choice vouchers and other housing subsidies.

5.    Help protect low-income renters by expanding the current San Jose rental ordinance to include private landlords who rent to tenants with Section 8 housing choice vouchers or other tenant-based subsidies.

The Affordable Housing Network will meet this Wed. at 5:30 pm at Somos Mayfair, 370 B South King Rd. in San Jose.

Learn more by visiting http://ahnscc.wordpress.com/

Media Contact: Sandy Perry perrysandy@aol.com