8 20-0228 Subject: Tenant Protection, Just Cause, & Rent Ordinance Amendments
From: City Attorney Parker, Councilmember Bas And Pro Tem Kalb
Recommendation: Adopt An Ordinance Amending Chapter 8.22 Of The Oakland Municipal Code (Residential Rent Adjustments And Evictions) To (1) Limit The Maximum Rent Increase In Any One Year To Conform To State Law; (2) Make Failure To Pay Required Relocation Benefits An Affirmative Defense To Eviction; (3) Limit Late Fees; (4) Prohibit Unilaterally Imposed Changes To Terms Of Tenancy; (5) Add One-For-One Replacement Of Roommates To The Definition Of Housing Services; (6) Prohibit Eviction Based On Additional Occupants If Landlord Unreasonably Refused Tenant's Written Request To Add Occupant(S); And (7) Strengthen Tenants' Rights And Enforcement Of Tenants' Rights Under The Tenant Protection Ordinance [TITLE CHANGE]
Oakland residents need our City Council to pass strong Tenant Protection upgrades NOW. Even before the COVID-19 pandemic reached California, Oakland faced a housing affordability crisis that threatened our public health, safety, and community stability. A wave of corporate landlords have bought up large parts of Oakland's rental housing stock. Their business model depends on displacing long-term black and brown tenants living in rent-controlled units so that they can rent out their units at higher, inflated prices. Despite our existing laws against tenant harassment, this behavior by bad actor landlords is still an effective way of removing tenants from their homes. We are seeing devastating impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic on our community. The aftermath of COVID-19 is only going to worsen Oakland’s housing crisis. Without strong protections, Oakland’s communities of color are on the verge of an avalanche of displacement from which they, and the city’s diversity, may never recover. While the city has taken steps to protect tenants by passing an eviction moratorium, some landlords are continuing to attempt to intimidate tenants into leaving. Now, and as we recover from this pandemic, City Council must act to keep Oakland residents safe and housed. We are thankful that Council members Dan Kalb and Nikki Fortunato Bas, and City Attorney Barbara Parker, have sponsored these important protections for Oakland tenants. We urge you and the other city council members to join them.
We have had the good luck to rent our in-law unit in Oakland for 4 decades, to wonderful tenants. No evictions! But the City of Oakland has made staggering changes for those of us who share our home with an in-law unit. We live with our tenant on a 35 x 100 foot lot, sharing pretty much all the space there is. We can’t ask a tenant to move, so it’s like being married but only the tenant can get a divorce. Now members of the council propose that we won’t be able to limit the number of tenants, or approve added tenants before they move in. A homeowner can’t do a lease that doesn’t allow subletting. There is no recognition that this affects not just tenants, but homeowners living in their home. The State of California recognizes that the in-law situation should be handled differently. Why build an in-law unit under these conditions? We are in our 70’s and do not want to cope with an uncertain rental situation that could impact our home so negatively with no way out. The penalty fees for asking someone to move for us would be almost a year’s rent. When our tenant moves, we will remove our very affordable unit from the market.
From stopping renters from being harassed out of their homes, to removing racist credit barriers for additional tenants & prohibiting landlords from calling ICE on a tenants loved ones, the #TenantProtectionUpgrades are what we need. The protections in this ordinance are meant to stabilize and advance racial justice in our community, now and after the pandemic.
Unless you’re a landlord trying to take advantage of this crisis to harass tenants out of their rent-controlled housing, these protections are no threat to you.
We lost over a quarter of our Black population due to the foreclosure crisis and almost a third if you count the speculation that’s followed. We need these common-sense protections at play to make sure mass racialized displacement doesn’t happen again. During the last week of June, a census study found that 43% of Black renters and 48% of Latinx renters and 44% of renters with children in CA had no or only slight confidence they’d be able to make rent this month. Our moratorium is not enough if tenants can still be forced out informally by abusive landlords. Please stand up for renters tomorrow by passing these protections and for Oakland workers by passing the right to recall.
My name is Penina Eilberg-Schwartz and I am an Oakland tenant in district 3. I strongly urge you -- plead with you -- to pass strong upgrades to Oakland’s tenant protections tomorrow. We've long needed to protect our community's tenants from the harmful practices of some landlords, and it's only more important in the midst of a pandemic. As we struggle as a community to fight white supremacy and build a safe place for all of us, we must recognize that a failure to pass these upgrades is a failure to support community members of color. Please, please support the strongest version of the tenant protection upgrades!
Even before the COVID-19 pandemic reached California, Oakland faced a housing affordability crisis that threatened our public health, safety, and community stability. A wave of corporate landlords have bought up large parts of Oakland's rental housing stock. Their business model depends on displacing long-term black and brown tenants living in rent-controlled units so that they can rent out their units at higher, inflated prices. Despite our existing laws against tenant harassment, this behavior by bad actor landlords is still an effective way of removing tenants from their homes.
We are seeing devastating impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic on our community. The aftermath of COVID-19 is only going to worsen Oakland’s housing crisis. Without strong protections, Oakland’s communities of color are on the verge of an avalanche of displacement from which they, and the city’s diversity, may never recover. While the city has taken steps to protect tenants by passing an eviction moratorium, some landlords are continuing to attempt to intimidate tenants into leaving. Now, and as we recover from this pandemic, City Council must act to keep Oakland residents safe and housed.
Oakland residents need our City Council to pass strong Tenant Protection upgrades NOW.
We are thankful that Councilmembers Dan Kalb and Nikki Fortunato Bas, and City Attorney Barbara Parker, have sponsored these important protections. We urge you and the other city councilmembers to join them.
As a D3 tenant and voter, I strongly support the upgrades to the tenant protections. This time calls for further protection of those most vulnerable within our community. Oakland residents need our City Council to pass strong Tenant Protection upgrades NOW.
Thank you to Councilmembers Dan Kalb and Nikki Fortunato Bas, and City Attorney Barbara Parker, for sponsoring these important protections for Oakland tenants. We urge the other city councilmembers to please do the right thing and join them.
Even before the pandemic reached CA, Oakland faced a housing crisis that threatened our public health, safety, and community stability. A wave of corporate landlords have bought up large parts of Oakland's rental housing stock. Their business model depends on displacing long-term black and brown tenants living in rent-controlled units so that they can rent out their units at inflated prices. Despite our existing laws against tenant harassment, this behavior by bad actor landlords is still used to remove tenants from their homes.
We are seeing devastating impacts from COVID-19 on our community. Without strong protections, Oakland’s communities of color are on the verge of an avalanche of displacement from which they, and the city’s diversity, may never recover. While the city has taken steps to protect tenants by passing an eviction moratorium, some landlords continue to attempt to intimidate tenants into leaving. City Council must act to keep Oakland residents safe and housed.
I am an Oakland renter in D3, and STRONGLY urge the City Council to support the Tenant Protection Upgrades. I can see the ways in which so many of my neighbors are being pushed out of their homes by bad actor landlords who harass them illegally, don't allow them to add new roommates to the lease even when there is room for additional occupants, charge unreasonable late fees, etc. I am particularly concerned about the ways in which this is only making Oakland's gentrification and displacement crisis even worse. THANK YOU to Councilmembers Bas and Kalb and City Attorney Parker for supporting these important protections. I urge others to do so as well.
**We deserve representatives that will fight back against the housing crisis, stand up to corporate landlords, and insist on real renter protections. THANK YOU to Councilmembers Dan Kalb and Nikki Fortunato Bas, and City Attorney Barbara Parker for sponsoring these protections, Oakland City Council please do the right thing and join them.**
Even before the COVID-19 pandemic reached California, Oakland faced a housing affordability crisis that threatened our public health, safety, and community stability. A wave of corporate landlords have bought up large parts of Oakland's rental housing stock. Their business model depends on displacing long-term BIPOC tenants living in rent-controlled units so that they can rent out their units at inflated prices. Despite our existing laws against tenant harassment, this behavior by bad actor landlords is still an effective way of removing tenants from their homes.
We are seeing devastating impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic on our community. The aftermath of COVID-19 is only going to worsen Oakland’s housing crisis. Without strong protections, Oakland’s communities of color are on the verge of an avalanche of displacement from which they, and the city’s diversity, may never recover. While the city has taken steps to protect tenants by passing an eviction moratorium, some landlords are continuing to intimidate tenants into leaving. Now, and as we recover from this pandemic, City Council must act to keep Oakland residents safe and housed.
Covid-19 has caused tremendous economic harm to the most vulnerable members of our community. This should not be compounded by losing their housing and threatening them with being thrown into poverty or homelessness. As a Berkeley resident, I am asking you to act to protect my friends and neighbors in Oakland.
I'm an Oakland renter and make a decent salary, but even so, finding safe, affordable housing here is a huge challenge, and has been an increasing challenge in the last decade. And if it's a challenge for someone in a privileged position like my own, then it goes without question that we are failing a huge number of Oakland renters and Oakland natives on something as fundamental to our safety as our home. Now throw COVID into the picture! We can do better. It should be obvious that when more people have access to safe, stable and affordable housing, it positively impacts us all.
We are seeing devastating impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic on our community. The aftermath of COVID-19 is only going to worsen Oakland’s housing crisis. Without strong protections, Oakland’s communities of color are on the verge of an avalanche of displacement from which they, and the city’s diversity, may never recover. While the city has taken steps to protect tenants by passing an eviction moratorium, some landlords are continuing to attempt to intimidate tenants into leaving. Now, and as we recover from this pandemic, City Council must act to keep Oakland residents safe and housed.
We need our City Council to pass strong Tenant Protection upgrades NOW.
We are thankful that Councilmembers Dan Kalb and Nikki Fortunato Bas, and City Attorney Barbara Parker, have sponsored these important protections for Oakland tenants. We urge you and the other city councilmembers to join them.
I am writing to express my support for the tenant protections being considered by the council. I rent in Downtown Oakland and I have seen first hand how landlords harass long-time tenants to push them out of rent controlled units so that they can rent those units for 2 or 3x the price at market rate. Many of my neighbors are out of work due to the pandemic or live on fixed incomes. If they were evicted I don't know where they would go. I urge you to pass these protections, which will offer tenants some measure of comfort and will send a message that the City's first priority is the well-being of its residents, not the revenue potential of landlords.
I'm a renter in Oakland, and I know first-hand how difficult it is to find safe/affordable/stable housing, which has been a problem long before the COVID-19 pandemic. I'm lucky to make a living wage and I don't face racial discrimination from landlords, and I still can barely afford rent in places with 3-5 other roommates, and have lived in 4 different houses in 2 years. I'm not complaining, I'm grateful to be housed and have a job at all. I just mean to illustrate that if this is a privileged experience, there's an incredible depth of suffering inherent in the current housing system.
Without strong protections, Oakland’s communities of color are on the verge of an avalanche of displacement from which they, and the city’s diversity, may never recover. While the city has taken steps to protect tenants by passing an eviction moratorium, some landlords are continuing to attempt to intimidate tenants into leaving. Now, and as we recover from this pandemic, City Council must act to keep Oakland residents safe and housed.
Oakland residents need our City Council to pass strong Tenant Protection upgrades NOW.
Thank you to Councilmembers Dan Kalb and Nikki Fortunato Bas, and City Attorney Barbara Parker, for sponsoring these important protections for Oakland tenants. We urge you and the other city councilmembers to join them.
Opponents of housing should rejoice! Oakland is now one of the worst places to provide housing in the country. This bad policy = less housing and less investment in the aged housing stock we already have. Congratulations Kalb and Bas!
Even before the COVID-19 pandemic reached California, Oakland faced a housing affordability crisis that threatened our public health, safety, and community stability. A wave of corporate landlords have bought up large parts of Oakland's rental housing stock. Their business model depends on displacing long-term black and brown tenants living in rent-controlled units so that they can rent out their units at higher, inflated prices. Despite our existing laws against tenant harassment, this behavior by bad actor landlords is still an effective way of removing tenants from their homes.
We are seeing devastating impacts from the pandemic on our community and the aftermath is only going to worsen Oakland’s housing crisis. Without strong protections, Oakland’s communities of color are on the verge of an avalanche of displacement from which they, and the city’s diversity, may never recover. While the city has taken steps to protect tenants by passing an eviction moratorium, some landlords continue to attempt to intimidate tenants into leaving. Now, and as we recover from this pandemic, City Council must act to keep Oakland residents safe and housed.
Oakland residents need our City Council to pass strong Tenant Protection upgrades NOW.
We are thankful that Councilmembers Dan Kalb and Nikki Fortunato Bas, and City Attorney Barbara Parker, have sponsored these important protections for Oakland tenants. We urge you and the other city councilmembers to join them.
**COMBAT GENTRIFICATION IN OAKLAND** Even before the COVID-19 pandemic reached California, Oakland faced a housing affordability crisis that threatened our public health, safety, and community stability. A wave of corporate landlords have bought up large parts of Oakland's rental housing stock. Their business model depends on displacing long-term black and brown tenants living in rent-controlled units so that they can rent out their units at higher, inflated prices. Despite our existing laws against tenant harassment, this behavior by bad actor landlords is still an effective way of removing tenants from their homes.
The aftermath of COVID-19 is only going to worsen Oakland’s housing crisis. Without strong protections, Oakland’s communities of color are on the verge of an avalanche of displacement from which they, and the city’s diversity, may never recover. While the city has taken steps to protect tenants by passing an eviction moratorium, some landlords are continuing to attempt to intimidate tenants into leaving. Now, and as we recover from this pandemic, City Council must act to keep Oakland residents safe and housed.
Oakland residents need our City Council to pass strong Tenant Protection upgrades NOW.
We are thankful that Councilmembers Dan Kalb and Nikki Fortunato Bas, and City Attorney Barbara Parker, have sponsored these important protections for Oakland tenants. We urge you and the other city councilmembers to join them.
Even before the COVID-19 pandemic reached California, Oakland faced a housing affordability crisis that threatened our public health, safety, and community stability. A wave of corporate landlords have bought up large parts of Oakland's rental housing stock. Their business model depends on displacing long-term black and brown tenants living in rent-controlled units so that they can rent out their units at higher, inflated prices. Despite our existing laws against tenant harassment, this behavior by bad actor landlords is still an effective way of removing tenants from their homes.
We are seeing devastating impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic on our community. The aftermath of COVID-19 is only going to worsen Oakland’s housing crisis. Without strong protections, Oakland’s communities of color are on the verge of an avalanche of displacement from which they, and the city’s diversity, may never recover. While the city has taken steps to protect tenants by passing an eviction moratorium, some landlords are continuing to attempt to intimidate tenants into leaving. Now, and as we recover from this pandemic, City Council must act to keep Oakland residents safe and housed.
Oakland residents need our City Council to pass strong Tenant Protection upgrades NOW.
We are thankful that Councilmembers Dan Kalb and Nikki Fortunato Bas, and City Attorney Barbara Parker, have sponsored these important protections. We urge you and the other city councilmembers to join them.
Even before the COVID-19 pandemic reached California, Oakland faced a housing affordability crisis that threatened our public health, safety, and community stability. A wave of corporate landlords have bought up large parts of Oakland's rental housing stock. Their business model depends on displacing long-term black and brown tenants living in rent-controlled units so that they can rent out their units at higher, inflated prices. Despite our existing laws against tenant harassment, this behavior by bad actor landlords is still an effective way of removing tenants from their homes.
We are seeing devastating impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic on our community. The aftermath of COVID-19 is only going to worsen Oakland’s housing crisis. Without strong protections, Oakland’s communities of color are on the verge of an avalanche of displacement from which they, and the city’s diversity, may never recover. While the city has taken steps to protect tenants by passing an eviction moratorium, some landlords continue to attempt to intimidate tenants into leaving. Now, and as we recover from this pandemic, City Council must act to keep Oakland residents safe and housed.
Oakland residents need our City Council to pass strong Tenant Protection upgrades NOW.
We are thankful that Councilmembers Dan Kalb and Nikki Fortunato Bas, and City Attorney Barbara Parker, have sponsored these important protections for Oakland tenants. We urge you and the other city councilmembers to join them.
Councillors,
Thank you for your service. I may not agree with you, but I've been to enough local-government meetings to know the work is real, and your decision to spend your time serving your community is admirable.
I write to add my voice to the chorus: Even before the COVID-19 pandemic reached California, Oakland faced a housing affordability crisis that threatened our public health, safety, and community stability. A wave of corporate landlords have bought up large parts of Oakland's rental housing stock. Their business model depends on displacing long-term black and brown tenants living in rent-controlled units so that they can rent out their units at higher, inflated prices. Despite our existing laws against tenant harassment, this behavior by bad actor landlords is still an effective way of removing tenants from their homes.
We are seeing devastating impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic on our community. The aftermath of COVID-19 is only going to worsen Oakland’s housing crisis. Without strong protections, Oakland’s communities of color are on the verge of an avalanche of displacement from which they, and the city’s diversity, may never recover. While the city has taken steps to protect tenants by passing an eviction moratorium, some landlords are continuing to attempt to intimidate tenants into leaving. Now, and as we recover from this pandemic, City Council must act to keep Oakland residents safe and housed.
Hi My name is Karly Pearson and I am a concerned citizen of Berkeley. Even before the COVID-19 pandemic reached California, Oakland faced a housing affordability crisis that threatened our public health, safety, and community stability. A wave of corporate landlords have bought up large parts of Oakland's rental housing stock. Their business model depends on displacing long-term black and brown tenants living in rent-controlled units so that they can rent out their units at higher, inflated prices. Despite our existing laws against tenant harassment, this behavior by bad actor landlords is still an effective way of removing tenants from their homes.
We are seeing devastating impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic on our community. The aftermath of COVID-19 is only going to worsen Oakland’s housing crisis. Without strong protections, Oakland’s communities of color are on the verge of an avalanche of displacement from which they, and the city’s diversity, may never recover. While the city has taken steps to protect tenants by passing an eviction moratorium, some landlords are continuing to attempt to intimidate tenants into leaving. Now, and as we recover from this pandemic, City Council must act to keep Oakland residents safe and housed.
We are thankful that Councilmembers Dan Kalb and Nikki Fortunato Bas, and City Attorney Barbara Parker, have sponsored these important protections for Oakland tenants. We urge you and the other city councilmembers to join them.
We are seeing devastating impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic on our community. The aftermath of COVID-19 is only going to worsen Oakland’s housing crisis. Without strong protections, Oakland’s communities of color are on the verge of an avalanche of displacement from which they, and the city’s diversity, may never recover. While the city has taken steps to protect tenants by passing an eviction moratorium, some landlords are continuing to attempt to intimidate tenants into leaving. Now, and as we recover from this pandemic, City Council must act to keep Oakland residents safe and housed.
Oakland residents need our City Council to pass strong Tenant Protection upgrades NOW.
Oakland residents need our City Council to pass strong Tenant Protection upgrades NOW. Even before the COVID-19 pandemic reached California, Oakland faced a housing affordability crisis that threatened our public health, safety, and community stability. A wave of corporate landlords have bought up large parts of Oakland's rental housing stock. Their business model depends on displacing long-term black and brown tenants living in rent-controlled units so that they can rent out their units at higher, inflated prices. Despite our existing laws against tenant harassment, this behavior by bad actor landlords is still an effective way of removing tenants from their homes. We are seeing devastating impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic on our community. The aftermath of COVID-19 is only going to worsen Oakland’s housing crisis. Without strong protections, Oakland’s communities of color are on the verge of an avalanche of displacement from which they, and the city’s diversity, may never recover. While the city has taken steps to protect tenants by passing an eviction moratorium, some landlords are continuing to attempt to intimidate tenants into leaving. Now, and as we recover from this pandemic, City Council must act to keep Oakland residents safe and housed. We are thankful that Council members Dan Kalb and Nikki Fortunato Bas, and City Attorney Barbara Parker, have sponsored these important protections for Oakland tenants. We urge you and the other city council members to join them.
We have had the good luck to rent our in-law unit in Oakland for 4 decades, to wonderful tenants. No evictions! But the City of Oakland has made staggering changes for those of us who share our home with an in-law unit. We live with our tenant on a 35 x 100 foot lot, sharing pretty much all the space there is. We can’t ask a tenant to move, so it’s like being married but only the tenant can get a divorce. Now members of the council propose that we won’t be able to limit the number of tenants, or approve added tenants before they move in. A homeowner can’t do a lease that doesn’t allow subletting. There is no recognition that this affects not just tenants, but homeowners living in their home. The State of California recognizes that the in-law situation should be handled differently. Why build an in-law unit under these conditions? We are in our 70’s and do not want to cope with an uncertain rental situation that could impact our home so negatively with no way out. The penalty fees for asking someone to move for us would be almost a year’s rent. When our tenant moves, we will remove our very affordable unit from the market.
From stopping renters from being harassed out of their homes, to removing racist credit barriers for additional tenants & prohibiting landlords from calling ICE on a tenants loved ones, the #TenantProtectionUpgrades are what we need. The protections in this ordinance are meant to stabilize and advance racial justice in our community, now and after the pandemic.
Unless you’re a landlord trying to take advantage of this crisis to harass tenants out of their rent-controlled housing, these protections are no threat to you.
We lost over a quarter of our Black population due to the foreclosure crisis and almost a third if you count the speculation that’s followed. We need these common-sense protections at play to make sure mass racialized displacement doesn’t happen again. During the last week of June, a census study found that 43% of Black renters and 48% of Latinx renters and 44% of renters with children in CA had no or only slight confidence they’d be able to make rent this month. Our moratorium is not enough if tenants can still be forced out informally by abusive landlords. Please stand up for renters tomorrow by passing these protections and for Oakland workers by passing the right to recall.
My name is Penina Eilberg-Schwartz and I am an Oakland tenant in district 3. I strongly urge you -- plead with you -- to pass strong upgrades to Oakland’s tenant protections tomorrow. We've long needed to protect our community's tenants from the harmful practices of some landlords, and it's only more important in the midst of a pandemic. As we struggle as a community to fight white supremacy and build a safe place for all of us, we must recognize that a failure to pass these upgrades is a failure to support community members of color. Please, please support the strongest version of the tenant protection upgrades!
Even before the COVID-19 pandemic reached California, Oakland faced a housing affordability crisis that threatened our public health, safety, and community stability. A wave of corporate landlords have bought up large parts of Oakland's rental housing stock. Their business model depends on displacing long-term black and brown tenants living in rent-controlled units so that they can rent out their units at higher, inflated prices. Despite our existing laws against tenant harassment, this behavior by bad actor landlords is still an effective way of removing tenants from their homes.
We are seeing devastating impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic on our community. The aftermath of COVID-19 is only going to worsen Oakland’s housing crisis. Without strong protections, Oakland’s communities of color are on the verge of an avalanche of displacement from which they, and the city’s diversity, may never recover. While the city has taken steps to protect tenants by passing an eviction moratorium, some landlords are continuing to attempt to intimidate tenants into leaving. Now, and as we recover from this pandemic, City Council must act to keep Oakland residents safe and housed.
Oakland residents need our City Council to pass strong Tenant Protection upgrades NOW.
We are thankful that Councilmembers Dan Kalb and Nikki Fortunato Bas, and City Attorney Barbara Parker, have sponsored these important protections. We urge you and the other city councilmembers to join them.
As a D3 tenant and voter, I strongly support the upgrades to the tenant protections. This time calls for further protection of those most vulnerable within our community. Oakland residents need our City Council to pass strong Tenant Protection upgrades NOW.
Thank you to Councilmembers Dan Kalb and Nikki Fortunato Bas, and City Attorney Barbara Parker, for sponsoring these important protections for Oakland tenants. We urge the other city councilmembers to please do the right thing and join them.
Even before the pandemic reached CA, Oakland faced a housing crisis that threatened our public health, safety, and community stability. A wave of corporate landlords have bought up large parts of Oakland's rental housing stock. Their business model depends on displacing long-term black and brown tenants living in rent-controlled units so that they can rent out their units at inflated prices. Despite our existing laws against tenant harassment, this behavior by bad actor landlords is still used to remove tenants from their homes.
We are seeing devastating impacts from COVID-19 on our community. Without strong protections, Oakland’s communities of color are on the verge of an avalanche of displacement from which they, and the city’s diversity, may never recover. While the city has taken steps to protect tenants by passing an eviction moratorium, some landlords continue to attempt to intimidate tenants into leaving. City Council must act to keep Oakland residents safe and housed.
I am an Oakland renter in D3, and STRONGLY urge the City Council to support the Tenant Protection Upgrades. I can see the ways in which so many of my neighbors are being pushed out of their homes by bad actor landlords who harass them illegally, don't allow them to add new roommates to the lease even when there is room for additional occupants, charge unreasonable late fees, etc. I am particularly concerned about the ways in which this is only making Oakland's gentrification and displacement crisis even worse. THANK YOU to Councilmembers Bas and Kalb and City Attorney Parker for supporting these important protections. I urge others to do so as well.
**We deserve representatives that will fight back against the housing crisis, stand up to corporate landlords, and insist on real renter protections. THANK YOU to Councilmembers Dan Kalb and Nikki Fortunato Bas, and City Attorney Barbara Parker for sponsoring these protections, Oakland City Council please do the right thing and join them.**
Even before the COVID-19 pandemic reached California, Oakland faced a housing affordability crisis that threatened our public health, safety, and community stability. A wave of corporate landlords have bought up large parts of Oakland's rental housing stock. Their business model depends on displacing long-term BIPOC tenants living in rent-controlled units so that they can rent out their units at inflated prices. Despite our existing laws against tenant harassment, this behavior by bad actor landlords is still an effective way of removing tenants from their homes.
We are seeing devastating impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic on our community. The aftermath of COVID-19 is only going to worsen Oakland’s housing crisis. Without strong protections, Oakland’s communities of color are on the verge of an avalanche of displacement from which they, and the city’s diversity, may never recover. While the city has taken steps to protect tenants by passing an eviction moratorium, some landlords are continuing to intimidate tenants into leaving. Now, and as we recover from this pandemic, City Council must act to keep Oakland residents safe and housed.
Covid-19 has caused tremendous economic harm to the most vulnerable members of our community. This should not be compounded by losing their housing and threatening them with being thrown into poverty or homelessness. As a Berkeley resident, I am asking you to act to protect my friends and neighbors in Oakland.
I'm an Oakland renter and make a decent salary, but even so, finding safe, affordable housing here is a huge challenge, and has been an increasing challenge in the last decade. And if it's a challenge for someone in a privileged position like my own, then it goes without question that we are failing a huge number of Oakland renters and Oakland natives on something as fundamental to our safety as our home. Now throw COVID into the picture! We can do better. It should be obvious that when more people have access to safe, stable and affordable housing, it positively impacts us all.
We are seeing devastating impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic on our community. The aftermath of COVID-19 is only going to worsen Oakland’s housing crisis. Without strong protections, Oakland’s communities of color are on the verge of an avalanche of displacement from which they, and the city’s diversity, may never recover. While the city has taken steps to protect tenants by passing an eviction moratorium, some landlords are continuing to attempt to intimidate tenants into leaving. Now, and as we recover from this pandemic, City Council must act to keep Oakland residents safe and housed.
We need our City Council to pass strong Tenant Protection upgrades NOW.
We are thankful that Councilmembers Dan Kalb and Nikki Fortunato Bas, and City Attorney Barbara Parker, have sponsored these important protections for Oakland tenants. We urge you and the other city councilmembers to join them.
I am writing to express my support for the tenant protections being considered by the council. I rent in Downtown Oakland and I have seen first hand how landlords harass long-time tenants to push them out of rent controlled units so that they can rent those units for 2 or 3x the price at market rate. Many of my neighbors are out of work due to the pandemic or live on fixed incomes. If they were evicted I don't know where they would go. I urge you to pass these protections, which will offer tenants some measure of comfort and will send a message that the City's first priority is the well-being of its residents, not the revenue potential of landlords.
I'm a renter in Oakland, and I know first-hand how difficult it is to find safe/affordable/stable housing, which has been a problem long before the COVID-19 pandemic. I'm lucky to make a living wage and I don't face racial discrimination from landlords, and I still can barely afford rent in places with 3-5 other roommates, and have lived in 4 different houses in 2 years. I'm not complaining, I'm grateful to be housed and have a job at all. I just mean to illustrate that if this is a privileged experience, there's an incredible depth of suffering inherent in the current housing system.
Without strong protections, Oakland’s communities of color are on the verge of an avalanche of displacement from which they, and the city’s diversity, may never recover. While the city has taken steps to protect tenants by passing an eviction moratorium, some landlords are continuing to attempt to intimidate tenants into leaving. Now, and as we recover from this pandemic, City Council must act to keep Oakland residents safe and housed.
Oakland residents need our City Council to pass strong Tenant Protection upgrades NOW.
Thank you to Councilmembers Dan Kalb and Nikki Fortunato Bas, and City Attorney Barbara Parker, for sponsoring these important protections for Oakland tenants. We urge you and the other city councilmembers to join them.
Opponents of housing should rejoice! Oakland is now one of the worst places to provide housing in the country. This bad policy = less housing and less investment in the aged housing stock we already have. Congratulations Kalb and Bas!
Even before the COVID-19 pandemic reached California, Oakland faced a housing affordability crisis that threatened our public health, safety, and community stability. A wave of corporate landlords have bought up large parts of Oakland's rental housing stock. Their business model depends on displacing long-term black and brown tenants living in rent-controlled units so that they can rent out their units at higher, inflated prices. Despite our existing laws against tenant harassment, this behavior by bad actor landlords is still an effective way of removing tenants from their homes.
We are seeing devastating impacts from the pandemic on our community and the aftermath is only going to worsen Oakland’s housing crisis. Without strong protections, Oakland’s communities of color are on the verge of an avalanche of displacement from which they, and the city’s diversity, may never recover. While the city has taken steps to protect tenants by passing an eviction moratorium, some landlords continue to attempt to intimidate tenants into leaving. Now, and as we recover from this pandemic, City Council must act to keep Oakland residents safe and housed.
Oakland residents need our City Council to pass strong Tenant Protection upgrades NOW.
We are thankful that Councilmembers Dan Kalb and Nikki Fortunato Bas, and City Attorney Barbara Parker, have sponsored these important protections for Oakland tenants. We urge you and the other city councilmembers to join them.
**COMBAT GENTRIFICATION IN OAKLAND** Even before the COVID-19 pandemic reached California, Oakland faced a housing affordability crisis that threatened our public health, safety, and community stability. A wave of corporate landlords have bought up large parts of Oakland's rental housing stock. Their business model depends on displacing long-term black and brown tenants living in rent-controlled units so that they can rent out their units at higher, inflated prices. Despite our existing laws against tenant harassment, this behavior by bad actor landlords is still an effective way of removing tenants from their homes.
The aftermath of COVID-19 is only going to worsen Oakland’s housing crisis. Without strong protections, Oakland’s communities of color are on the verge of an avalanche of displacement from which they, and the city’s diversity, may never recover. While the city has taken steps to protect tenants by passing an eviction moratorium, some landlords are continuing to attempt to intimidate tenants into leaving. Now, and as we recover from this pandemic, City Council must act to keep Oakland residents safe and housed.
Oakland residents need our City Council to pass strong Tenant Protection upgrades NOW.
We are thankful that Councilmembers Dan Kalb and Nikki Fortunato Bas, and City Attorney Barbara Parker, have sponsored these important protections for Oakland tenants. We urge you and the other city councilmembers to join them.
Even before the COVID-19 pandemic reached California, Oakland faced a housing affordability crisis that threatened our public health, safety, and community stability. A wave of corporate landlords have bought up large parts of Oakland's rental housing stock. Their business model depends on displacing long-term black and brown tenants living in rent-controlled units so that they can rent out their units at higher, inflated prices. Despite our existing laws against tenant harassment, this behavior by bad actor landlords is still an effective way of removing tenants from their homes.
We are seeing devastating impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic on our community. The aftermath of COVID-19 is only going to worsen Oakland’s housing crisis. Without strong protections, Oakland’s communities of color are on the verge of an avalanche of displacement from which they, and the city’s diversity, may never recover. While the city has taken steps to protect tenants by passing an eviction moratorium, some landlords are continuing to attempt to intimidate tenants into leaving. Now, and as we recover from this pandemic, City Council must act to keep Oakland residents safe and housed.
Oakland residents need our City Council to pass strong Tenant Protection upgrades NOW.
We are thankful that Councilmembers Dan Kalb and Nikki Fortunato Bas, and City Attorney Barbara Parker, have sponsored these important protections. We urge you and the other city councilmembers to join them.
Even before the COVID-19 pandemic reached California, Oakland faced a housing affordability crisis that threatened our public health, safety, and community stability. A wave of corporate landlords have bought up large parts of Oakland's rental housing stock. Their business model depends on displacing long-term black and brown tenants living in rent-controlled units so that they can rent out their units at higher, inflated prices. Despite our existing laws against tenant harassment, this behavior by bad actor landlords is still an effective way of removing tenants from their homes.
We are seeing devastating impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic on our community. The aftermath of COVID-19 is only going to worsen Oakland’s housing crisis. Without strong protections, Oakland’s communities of color are on the verge of an avalanche of displacement from which they, and the city’s diversity, may never recover. While the city has taken steps to protect tenants by passing an eviction moratorium, some landlords continue to attempt to intimidate tenants into leaving. Now, and as we recover from this pandemic, City Council must act to keep Oakland residents safe and housed.
Oakland residents need our City Council to pass strong Tenant Protection upgrades NOW.
We are thankful that Councilmembers Dan Kalb and Nikki Fortunato Bas, and City Attorney Barbara Parker, have sponsored these important protections for Oakland tenants. We urge you and the other city councilmembers to join them.
Councillors,
Thank you for your service. I may not agree with you, but I've been to enough local-government meetings to know the work is real, and your decision to spend your time serving your community is admirable.
I write to add my voice to the chorus: Even before the COVID-19 pandemic reached California, Oakland faced a housing affordability crisis that threatened our public health, safety, and community stability. A wave of corporate landlords have bought up large parts of Oakland's rental housing stock. Their business model depends on displacing long-term black and brown tenants living in rent-controlled units so that they can rent out their units at higher, inflated prices. Despite our existing laws against tenant harassment, this behavior by bad actor landlords is still an effective way of removing tenants from their homes.
We are seeing devastating impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic on our community. The aftermath of COVID-19 is only going to worsen Oakland’s housing crisis. Without strong protections, Oakland’s communities of color are on the verge of an avalanche of displacement from which they, and the city’s diversity, may never recover. While the city has taken steps to protect tenants by passing an eviction moratorium, some landlords are continuing to attempt to intimidate tenants into leaving. Now, and as we recover from this pandemic, City Council must act to keep Oakland residents safe and housed.
Hi My name is Karly Pearson and I am a concerned citizen of Berkeley. Even before the COVID-19 pandemic reached California, Oakland faced a housing affordability crisis that threatened our public health, safety, and community stability. A wave of corporate landlords have bought up large parts of Oakland's rental housing stock. Their business model depends on displacing long-term black and brown tenants living in rent-controlled units so that they can rent out their units at higher, inflated prices. Despite our existing laws against tenant harassment, this behavior by bad actor landlords is still an effective way of removing tenants from their homes.
We are seeing devastating impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic on our community. The aftermath of COVID-19 is only going to worsen Oakland’s housing crisis. Without strong protections, Oakland’s communities of color are on the verge of an avalanche of displacement from which they, and the city’s diversity, may never recover. While the city has taken steps to protect tenants by passing an eviction moratorium, some landlords are continuing to attempt to intimidate tenants into leaving. Now, and as we recover from this pandemic, City Council must act to keep Oakland residents safe and housed.
We are thankful that Councilmembers Dan Kalb and Nikki Fortunato Bas, and City Attorney Barbara Parker, have sponsored these important protections for Oakland tenants. We urge you and the other city councilmembers to join them.
We are seeing devastating impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic on our community. The aftermath of COVID-19 is only going to worsen Oakland’s housing crisis. Without strong protections, Oakland’s communities of color are on the verge of an avalanche of displacement from which they, and the city’s diversity, may never recover. While the city has taken steps to protect tenants by passing an eviction moratorium, some landlords are continuing to attempt to intimidate tenants into leaving. Now, and as we recover from this pandemic, City Council must act to keep Oakland residents safe and housed.
Oakland residents need our City Council to pass strong Tenant Protection upgrades NOW.