Fairfax Just Cause for
Eviction Ordinance Outreach
April - May 2023
Fairfax Outreach Process, 2022
March 2, 2022
Presentation on Rent
Stabilization from the
Democratic Socialist of
America (DSA) and Attorney
Leah Simon-Weisberg for the
Fairfax town council.
May 4, 2022
Council discussed how the
Town should direct
resources and selected one
of the proposed options for
implementation.
July 12, 2022
Council met and discussed
Just Cause Evictions
protections.
September 7, 2022
Council held a community
forum and presented more
details on how the
ordinances would be
administered.
September 21, 2022
The town attorney answered
questions from the council and
how/who the ordinances will
be administered.
October 11, 2022
The town attorney addressed
some core issues brought up
by the council from previous
meetings.
November 2, 2022
Council reviewed development of
ordinances to-date and concerns
raised from the public and the
council, including the cost of the
program, impact on staff
administration, and perceived
impact on the rental housing stock.
November 29, 2022
Legal Aid of Marin facilitated a
workshop to explain how both
ordinances would be
implemented.
Outreach Summary, 2023
1. Survey - April 12-April 23 (253 responses)
2. Workshop - Saturday, May 6
3. Online Comment Card - May 6-13
Topics Covered during Workshop
1. Types of Units Covered
2. Breach of Lease
3. Owner Move-In
4. Additional Eviction Protections for Elderly, Disabled, or Terminally Ill Tenants
5. Buy-Out Agreements
6. Right of Return
7. Additional Eviction Protections for Educators, Educational Staff, Students and Families
8. Relocation Payments
9. Temporary Relocation Payments
Types of Units Covered
Types of Rental Units Covered
Types of Rental Units Covered • Landlord Pe rs pe ctive :
◦ Exempt:
◦ Room re ntals in owne r-occupie d s ingle family home s ◦ ADU’s
◦ Units that are offe ring be low-market rate rents
• Te nant pe rs pe ctive:
◦ Include duple xe s .
◦ This s e ction doe s not s pe cify de e d re s tricte d affordable hous ing, which is not cove re d in e ithe r ordinance nor AB 14 8 2. This me ans the large s t apartme nt comple x in Fairfax is not cove re d by te nant prote ctions . How will Fairfax cove r the m?
◦ Re garding ADU’s and rooms re nte d in a hous e , the landlord is be ne fiting from the e xchange . S o why s hould the burde n of dis place me nt for a re nte r fall e ntire ly on the re nte r and not be s hare d by the income re ce iving landlord in at le as t s ome s mall way? “If there's not an exemption for single family owner occupied homes, it's definitely going to constrain the number of affordable rooms that are available in a county.” Breach of Lease
Breach of Lease • Landlord Pe rs pe ctive :
◦ S uble as ing s hould be limite d to re placing te nants , not incre as ing the numbe r of te nants . ◦ Te nant s hould be pre ve nte d from s uble as ing in orde r to make a profit. ◦ Te nant s hould not be allowe d to s uble t as an AirBNB or te mporary re ntal without full dis clos ure to, and approval of Landlord.
◦ Landlord s hould have more time to re vie w re que s t for s uble as ing, and no s uble as ing without writte n pe rmis s ion.
• Te nant Pe rs pe ctive :
◦ Family me mbe rs s hould be able to move in unle s s he alth and s afe ty s tandards are bre ache d. ◦ Te nants s hould be grante d more than 14 days to re ply. “I simply do not understand how any tenant can have unilateral Subleasing rights. That goes against the entire grain of personal property rights, or any doctrine of fairness, whatsoever.
Tenants should be required to gain approval from a landlord, before being able to Sublease to anyone.”
Owner Move-In
Owner Move-in
● Landlord Pe rs pe ctive :
○ Conce rn that ordinance as writte n will re s ult in hous ing provide rs fe e ling re s tricte d in who and how the y re nt to Fairfax re s ide nts .
○ Expand family me mbe rs allowe d to move in -- grandchild, s ibling, care take r ● Te nant Pe rs pe ctive :
○ Concern for owner move -in be ing us e d to e vict te nants without ove rs ight. ○ Limit family me mbe rs to imme diate family of landlord ● Family de finitions for re nte rs and landlords s hould be the s ame “…I think they (owners) need to show intent to stay long term…like not move in and then move out in a year and rent again. Maybe put a limit of time before it can go back as a rental.” Additional Eviction Protections
for Elderly, Disabled, or
Terminally Ill Tenants
• Landlord Pe rs pe ctive :
◦ Change de finition of e lde rly to 6 5 +, 72+, 75 +, 79 + ◦ Re duce notice pe riod to 6 , 3 months .
• Te nant Pe rs pe ctive :
◦ Incre as e notice to 18 months .
“This is a fundamental measure to avoid discrimination and evasion of legal obligations.” “I would increase the amount of notice, up to as much time as is remaining on the lease (or otherwise included in the notice period for lease renewals).” “Make an exception when the rental is in a single -family home and the property owner is elderly, disabled, or terminally ill.”
Additional Eviction Protections for Elderly,
Disabled, or Terminally ill Tenants
Buy-Out Agreements
Buy-out Agreements • Landlord Pe rs pe ctive
◦ Would like for the re to be caps on buyout agre e me nt amounts (1-12 months of re nt). ◦ Limit of buyout to the amount of time le ft on the le as e ; not applicable to month-to-month leases. • Te nant Pe rs pe ctive
◦ Language s e e ms writte n more on the s ide of hous ing provide rs than prote cting re nte rs . “I've heard of some horrific stories about people being extorted for certain amounts of money for someone to leave.”
“The section should be amended to require that the tenant may rescind the buy -out agreement for up to 45 days after the agreement is fully signed. Without some time period where the buy -out agreement is maintained as an option for a tenant to sign while the tenant consults with an attorney, the right for the tenant to consult with an attorney is reduced to a mere statement on paper with no meaningful guarantee that the tenant can actually exercise that right.” Right of Return
Right of Return • Landlord Pe rs pe ctive :
◦ Exe mpt “s ucce s s or landlords .”
◦ Exempt owner-occupie d s ingle family home .
◦ Clarify how landlords s hould contact te nants for Right to Re turn. ◦ Re duce curre nt re quire me nt of 5 ye ars .
• Te nant Pe rs pe ctive :
◦ S hould be maintaine d as a prote ction agains t e victions and imme diate ups e lling of unit. ◦ Right of re turn is only for no-fault e victions , it e nable s te nants the opportunity to move back into the ir unit if and whe n it again be come s available afte r the y’ve be e n e victe d. Ple as e re tain. ◦ Clarify time line for te nant to acce pt right of re turn. “There's a huge loophole that landlords have been taking advantage of. Basically they'll say, we're gonna close down the property, you've done nothing wrong. At this point they just need to use it, for now, say, like the owner move-in, however, that rental will go right back on the market, and they will jack up the prices for the next tenant. So this is meant to prevent that, and it is extremely important to keep in there.”
Additional Eviction Protections
for Educators, Educational
Staff, Students and Families
Additional Eviction Protections for
Educators, Ed. Staff, Students & Family • Landlord Pe rs pe ctive :
◦ Furthe r de fine s tude nt/te ache r (ie . full-time , clas s room, adult e ducator e tc). ◦ Is this jus t for Fairfax S chool Dis trict?
◦ Only apply to low and very low-income te nants .
• Te nant Pe rs pe ctive :
◦ All te ache rs , s tude nts , and s upport s taff ne e d prote ction during the s chool ye ar. “Explore ways to encourage landlords to rent to these groups with incentives instead of rules and fees.”
Relocation Payments
Relocation Payments • Landlord Pe rs pe ctive
◦ Diffe re ntiate be twe e n pe rmane nt and te mporary re location. ◦ Incre as e s in re location pay s hould not be tie d to CPI, but s hould align with incre as e s ide ntifie d in the re nt s tabilization ordinance (6 0 % of CPI).
◦ Re duce re location payme nt re quire me nts and only allow for re location payme nts afte r 12+ months . ◦ Do not apply to s ingle family home s , ADUs , or owne r occupie d home s . • Te nant Pe rs pe ctive :
◦ Would like this re gulation to be come valid upon move -in. ◦ Te nants are othe rwis e offe re d no as s is tance for re location, ple as e re tain. ◦ Ke e p as is , the amount in the ordinance doe s n’t ade quate ly cove r e xpe ns e of be ing re locations (s ic). “I was asked to leave my duplex, after being an absolutely perfect paying tenant for 15 years with my small family, and when I was asked to leave, so that the owner could make repairs and make the apartment more expensive the duplex more expensive I wasn't given anything at all.” “I would cap temporary relocation benefits to that prorated amount paid by the tenant, or an equal decrease/credit toward rent upon return of the tenant.” Temporary Relocation
Payments
General Comments • Re que s t to include more prote ctions for landlords from abus ive te nants in the ir home s . • Re que s t for more landlord frie ndly language be ing include d i.e . Hous ing-Provide rs ins te ad of landlords . • Re que s t to have Town s taff and e xpe rts that can ans we r que s tions about ordinance conte nt. • Re que s t for more e ngage me nt with landlords on the s e ordinance s and with the ge ne ral community. “Repeal ordinances, define Fairfax specific issues and start anew with a representative group of stakeholders. The Town Council has lost our trust.” “These ordinances are not based in equity, diversity, inclusion, economics, sustainability, and data. Both renters and housing providers need protections. Many on both sides are marginalized. The solution needs to be balanced for all parties. Ultimately, it needs to involve creating more subsidized housing from the government, through taxes.
Recommendations
Recommendations for Next Steps
• Share a comprehensive report of outreach efforts and outcomes completed to date on the Town of Fairfax website (on website). • Town Council discusses options for next steps at the June 7th meeting.
• Identify representative stakeholders from both tenant and landlord side (e.g, individuals; community-based organizations; business and trade associations; real estate developers; tenant protection advocacy groups; etc.) who may be called to discuss proposed changes with the subcommittee or other Town council members after the June 7th meeting.