Everyone should have an affordable, safe and healthy place to call home. But sky-high housing costs, driven by big real estate and out-of-town corporate landlords and those that have taken advantage of a tight housing market, are causing more and more people to lose their homes and be pushed onto the streets --- and our politicians are letting them.

As property owners, landlords and real estate professionals that are rooted in our communities, we have a vested interest in having stable communities where friends, family members and neighbors that are tenants can also thrive. We know that stabilizing our communities will include building more affordable housing stock in the long term. However, in the short term our neighborhoods desperately need solutions that can help families stay in their homes today and stop the rampant rent gouging.

That’s why we support families organizing to place the Affordable Housing Act on the ballot. By restoring the right of local cities to protect tenants from skyrocketing rents, we can make California affordable again - where all families can thrive.

• Rent control is good for the economy. It puts money in tenants’ pockets that is spent in the local economy. That helps local businesses, creates jobs, and makes the community thrive. 
• Rent control does NOT inhibit new housing construction. Big real estate industry will say that rent control reduces the incentive to build new housing, which is what is needed to solve the housing crisis. However, there is no evidence for this. Cities with and without rent control have similar levels of new housing construction.  Our communities can’t wait to just build our way out of the housing crisis - we need solutions that keep families in their homes today!  
• Rent control is a win-win for everyone - except for giant, out-of-town corporate landlords that are distorting market for renters, prospective first time home buyers and mom and pop landlords like us.

What is rent control: 

Rent control regulates rent increases - guaranteeing landlords a return on their investment by allowing reasonable annual increases while preventing rent gouging and unexpected blows to a tenant.

What is just cause eviction protections:

Just Cause eviction protections means landlords are required to have a "just cause" reason to evict a tenant. The law identifies legal causes for evicting tenants including violations of the lease, failure to pay rent, damage to the property, etc. while protecting tenants from unfair displacement.

What is the Affordable Housing Act:

The Affordable Housing Act is a proposed ballot initiative that would restore the right of local communities to protect families from skyrocketing rents by repealing the Costa Hawkins Rental Housing Act.

What is the Costa Hawkins Rental Housing Act:

Passed in 1995, Costa Hawkins ties the hands of local communities from protecting renters in three ways:

1. It prohibits single family rental units and condos from having rent control
2. It prohibits buildings built after 1995 from having rent control - or the year in which rent control was initially passed in your city
3. It eliminates "vacancy control," allowing landlords to raise the rent unlimited amounts between tenants when the unit becomes vacant. This provides an incentive for some landlords to harass longtime rent controlled tenants out of their homes so they can attract higher earning tenants - accelerating displacement and unaffordable housing for all.