Starting last Thursday, a local law requires landlords of market-rate apartment units in Santa Monica -- including single-family homes, condos, and accessory dwelling units (ADUs) -- to register them with the City.

Under a State law that also kicked in on January 1, landlords must provide working refrigerators and stoves in rental units, including single family homes.

Under a State law that also kicked in on January 1, landlords must provide working refrigerators and stoves in rental units, including single family homes.

Read More: https://www.surfsantamonica.com/ssm_site/the_lookout/news/News-2026/01_05_2026_New_Laws_Kick_in_This_Month.html

The rental registry ordinance, unanimously approved by the Santa Monica City Council in November 2025, requires all landlords to register their rental units with the city — extending to single-family homes, duplexes, condos, accessory dwelling units and any buildings not already under rent control. 

Read More:  https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp_backissues/010226.pdf%0A?ref=smdp.com

The ordinance, approved by the City Council earlier in December and affecting about 74% of rental units in Los Angeles, caps annual rent hikes between 1% and 4%. It also prohibits increases when tenants add family members such as children or elderly relatives under their care and eliminates certain utility-related surcharges.

Read More: https://smmirror.com/2025/12/mayor-bass-signs-updated-rent-ordinance-imposes-new-limits-on-increases/

A newly seated City Council that holds a 6 to 1 super-majority quickly makes housing development its top priority. New mayor Lana Negrete, who had been part of a narrow slow-growth Council majority that focused on public safety, finds herself a lone dissenting voice.

From the start, the Council approves measures that make it easier and faster for residential developers to build and sets aside City land for affordable housing. Talk of placing thousands of units on Airport land -- designated by voters for a “Great Park” -- picks up steam.

Read More: https://www.surfsantamonica.com/ssm_site/the_lookout/news/News-2025/December-2025/12_29_2025_Top_Stories_2025_Q1.html

Santa Monica City Council unanimously approved a self-certification program allowing businesses to obtain building permits in as little as one day, bypassing weeks of city review. The program launches April 2026 for commercial renovations, including restaurants.

Read More: https://www.smdp.com/santa-monica-approves-self-certification-pilot-to-fast-track-building-permits/

The move is part of a $50 million grant in state funding

See Video: https://smmirror.com/2025/12/video-pickleball-court-in-santa-monica-to-convert-to-affordable-housing/

A Los Angeles parcel transfer tax similar to the one approved in Santa Monica three years ago was upheld last week by the California Court of Appeals, handing another victory to voter-initiated taxes.

Monday's ruling found that the passage of Measure ULA to fund affordable housing and prevent homelessness "was a valid exercise of the people’s initiative power" under the State constitution.

Read More: https://www.surfsantamonica.com/ssm_site/the_lookout/news/News-2025/December-2025/12_23_2025_Voter_Initiated_Transfer_Taxes_Get_Another_Legal_Boost.html

California's top political watchdog has concluded that City Councilmember Jesse Zwick is disqualified from participating in "housing production decisions" made by the Council, City officials said Thursday.

The formal advice issued by the Fair Political Practices Commission FPPC) on December 8 determined that Zwick's employer, the statewide Housing Action Coalition (HAC), could benefit from the Council's action.

Read More: https://www.surfsantamonica.com/ssm_site/the_lookout/news/News-2025/December-2025/12_19_2025_Zwick_Cant_Vote_on_Housing_Development_Issues.html

he California Fair Political Practices Commission has ruled that Santa Monica Mayor Pro Tem Jesse Zwick must recuse himself from housing production decisions due to his employment with the Housing Action Coalition, concluding his position creates a conflict of interest under state law.

The FPPC issued a formal advice letter Dec. 8 finding that Zwick is disqualified from participating in certain City Council decisions related to housing production under the commission's interpretation of the Political Reform Act and its "nexus test."

Read More: https://www.smdp.com/state-regulators-say-councilman-zwick-is-conflicted-on-housing-votes/

Santa Monica’s transformation represents catastrophic memory loss at urban scale. Every demolished bungalow contained decades of family stories that even the casual observer can sense. Every shadow-casting tower erases solar rhythms evolved over centuries. Every exiled family leaves with irreplaceable knowledge of place.

We’re not adding chapters to our urban story—we’re ripping out pages until the narrative becomes incomprehensible.

Read More: https://smmirror.com/2025/12/sm-a-r-t-column-the-reckoning-a-city-that-cannot-remember-itself-part-three-of-three/