Rent Control

Rent Control

Daniel Miller

Dr. Gordon Mon

Math 115-2975

05/01/07

Rent control is defined as the laws and ordinances which set a price ceiling on the rent charger, on rent increases, and other forms of control on the price of rent in residential housing structures and facilities. In the United States, rent control was initially established by President Richard M. Nixon in 1971. While rent control has largely, faded away in the U.S., it remains in effect in several major cities with large tenant populations; however, elsewhere, it is largely limited to mobile home communities, and this is especially true in the state of California. The city and the laws thereof which this author is using in the essay as a prime example of rent control is the City of San Francisco, California.

The city of San Francisco has a highly intricate and complex set of rent control ordinances and statutes. The City of san Francisco originally passed the rent control laws in 1979; in their words, to, "...safeguard tenants from excessive rent increase and, at the same time, to assure landlords fair and adequate rents..."(1) The ordinance establishing rent control is highly extensive and encompasses an entire chapter (chapter 37) of the City or San Francisco's Administrative Code. The ordinance is also highly complex.

One application of rent control by the City of San Francisco is through the imposition of rent limitations. These are outlined in section 37.3 of the Administrative Code. Examples of limitations include, but are not limited to, the following:

Landlords cannot increase rent by an amount greater than 7% annually of t he base rent;

Landlords may impose rent increases based upon the cost of capital improvements, rehabilitation, energy consumption, improvements, and renewable energy improvements, provided such costs are certified and seismic strengthening is provided; such increases may not amount to more then 10% of base rent in a 12-month period; any additional costs must be used through increases in the following rent period, no to exceed 10% every 12 months;

Landlords may increase rent to change for utilities and excess water usage, the latter being no more than 50% of equivalent City fines, under certain limitations;

Landlords also may not set the price of rent for tenancies created prior to 1995.

The ordinances of the City of San Francisco also restrict the landlords; ability to evict tenants. This is a laid out in section 37.9. Tenants may only be evicted under limited circumstances, which include, but are not limited to, the following;

The tenant fails to pay the rent the landlord is lawfully entitled to under the oral of written agreement between them; this is only reference to base rent;

The tenant habitually pays the rent late;

The tenant's rent checks frequently bounce due to insufficient funds in the bank.

The tenant causes or permits nuisances, damage or destruction of rental property, or interferes substantially to the comfort of the landlord or other tenants;

The tenant permits the rental unit o be used for illegal purposes;

The tenant refuses to allow the landlord access, despite written notification and other proper procedures.

The refuses to renew a terminated agreement;

And the tenant at the end of the term is a subtenant not approved by the landlord.

Landlords are also subject to the following restrictions

The tenant may not evict a tenant for moving in more people than allowed by the landlord;

And all evictions must be done in good faith by the landlord with no ulterior motives, in order that the property may be similarly rented out again.

Landlords who violate the rules are subject to changes amounting to misdemeanors and may be subject to civil action. In addition there are a myriad of other rules and regulations regarding the landlord and his property.

In sum, the rent control exercised by the City of San Francisco suitably meets the definition of rent control. It entails price ceilings, dictations, and regulations, restrictions on the landlord's power to evict tenants, and a myriad of other restrictions and regulations on the landlord in relation to his property. It serves as an excellent example of rent control.

Arguments in favor and against rent control

Pro: Rent control is necessary to prevent landlords from forcing the elderly and poor the move, and the prevent hardships on others. Doing this is being unfair to others and is something which rent control helps to stop. Fairness and equality are something which must be present in all democracies. Tenants have an equal entitlement to a place to live as the landlords,