§ 8.22.610. Findings and purpose.

A.

There is a very significant demand for rental housing in Oakland leading to rising rents, caused in part by the spillover of increasingly expensive housing costs in San Francisco.

B.

Rents in Oakland increased twelve percent (12%) in 2012 and 15% in 2013 (Source: East Bay Express, February 12-18, 2014, "The Rise of the New Land Lords," sourcing Oakland Department of Housing and Community Development). As noted by a February 8, 2014 Oakland Tribune article ("High prices sending Bay Area renters and homebuyers to outlying communities"), "Squeezed by astronomical home prices and rents that are almost as unaffordable, a growing number of Bay Area residents are pulling up stakes and trading long commutes for cheaper housing."

C.

According to Oakland Department of Housing and Community Development citing to Zillow Real Estate Research, the estimated rent for all homes in Oakland for June 2014 two thousand one hundred twenty-four dollars ($2,124.00) is nearly eleven percent (11%) higher than that for the same month last year ($1,918.00), and rents have risen every month except for one (1) since January 2013 (18 months total). If current patterns persist, the estimated rent for all homes in June 2015 will be two thousand three hundred eighty-six dollars ($2,386.00). By comparison, the estimated median rent for all Oakland homes for June 2012 was $1,818.00, a thirty-one percent (31%) increase in only thirty-six (36) months.

D.

On September 12, 2014, the San Francisco Examiner reported that "San Francisco and Oakland have the distinction of having some of the highest rental rate increases in the nation for the month of August," with Oakland's rents increasing fourteen and four-tenths percent (14.4%) since last year, according to data collected by Trulia.

E.

The rising market demand for rental housing in Oakland creates an incentive for some landlords to engage in harassing behavior or fail to make repairs to pressure existing tenants in rent controlled units to move so that rents can be raised. Existing remedies, such as petitioning the Rent Adjustment Program to restore a rental rate or order repairs, or employing an attorney at great cost to file a lawsuit to enforce state law of lease provisions, are insufficient deterrents to engaging in the illegal conduct in the first place.

F.

The imbalance between supply and demand creates an imbalance of bargaining power between landlords and tenants, which has resulted in many tenants, especially those not in rent controlled units, being unwilling or unable to assert their legal rights, which is detrimental to the health, safety and general welfare of Oakland because the stability, security and quality of housing opportunities are reduced.

G.

The Rent Adjustment Program office of the City of Oakland has conservatively estimated receiving one hundred (100) to two hundred (200) complaints each month from tenants claiming landlord harassment, many of which are completely outside the jurisdiction of the Rent Adjustment Program.

H.

Numerous press articles have reported on the rise of tenant harassment throughout the Bay Area.

I.

Data from organizations providing services to low-income renters in Oakland, including East Bay Community Law Center and Centro Legal de la Raza, indicate that some of their clients live in housing with habitability problems and experience landlord harassment.

J.

Of the approximately four hundred eighty (480) Oakland tenants who received legal services at Centro Legal de la Raza during fiscal year 2014 (July 1, 2013 through June 30, 2014), approximately forty percent (40%) faced harassment by their landlords. The forms of harassment varied, but included one or more of the following in each case:

1.

Interrupting, terminating, failing to provide or threatening to interrupt, terminate or fail to provide housing services required by contract or by State, County or municipal housing, health or safety laws;

2.

Failing to perform required repairs and/or maintenance or threatening to fail to do so;

3.

Failing to exercise due diligence In completing repairs and maintenance once undertaken or failing to follow appropriate industry repair, containment or remediation protocols designed to minimize exposure to noise, dust, lead paint, mold, asbestos, or other building materials with potentially harmful health impacts;

4.

Abusing the owner's right of access into a rental housing unit as that right is provided by law;

5.

Unlawfully removing from the rental unit personal property, furnishings, or any other items without the prior written consent of the tenant;

6.

Influencing, or attempting to influence, a tenant to vacate a rental unit through fraud, intimidation or coeroion;

7.

Attempting to coerce a tenant to vacate with offer(s) of payments to vacate which ate accompanied with threats or intimidation;

8.

Threatening the tenant, by word or gesture, with physical harm;

9.

Substantially and directly interfering with a Tenant's right to quiet use and enjoyment of a rental housing unit as that right is defined by California law;

10.

Fraudulently refusing to accept or acknowledge receipt of a Tenant's lawful rent payment.

K.

A majority of Oakland residents are renters. The rental housing units in the City of Oakland include many subject to rent stabilization and some that are not. The cities of San Francisco, Santa Monica, West Hollywood, and East Palo Alto have each passed ordinances prohibiting various forms of harassment by landlords and their agents against tenants.

L.

The City Council of Oakland recognizes that displacement of tenants is a major concern and is interested in putting forth policies that help to maintain the ability of people in all income categories to live in our city. The increased housing pressures for residents across a range of lower and middle income levels warrants improved rent stabilization and tenant protection policies. The City Council finds that reasonable regulation of aspects of the landlord-tenant relationship is necessary in order to foster constructive communication, maintain an adequate supply of a variety of rental housing options, and protect health, safety, and the general welfare of the public.

M.

The purpose of this policy is to deter harassing behavior by landlords, to encourage landlords to follow the law and uphold their responsibility to provide habitable rental properties, and to give tenants legal recourse in instances where they are subjected to harassing behavior by landlords.

(Ord. No. 13265, § 1, 11-5-2014)