So, this week, we focus on the proposed transfer tax itself, the rationale, implementation  issues and why it’s a bad idea for Santa Monica.  

Read More: https://smmirror.com/2022/04/sma-r-t-column-new-city-financial-plan-the-resident-homeowner-bank-part-ii-who-pays-the-proposed-transfer-tax-and-where-does-the-money-go/

The Santa Monica Rent Control Board has released its 2021 Annual Report summarizing developments during the year and presenting detailed information about the status of controlled rental housing in Santa Monica.

Read More: https://www.santamonica.gov/blog/santa-monica-rent-control-board-releases-2021-annual-report

The Public Rights Division of the Santa Monica City Attorney's Office invites you to the 2022 Virtual Fair Housing Workshop on Tuesday, April 26, 2022, from 5 to 6:30 p.m.

The workshop presenters are Deputy City Attorneys Gary Rhoades, Autumn Rindels, and Jonathan Erwin-Frank. Topics will include:

• Reasonable accommodations for tenants with disabilities
• Santa Monica’s Right to Return program
• Pandemic-related issues in fair housing
• Source-of-income discrimination laws which protect Section 8 voucher-holders and users of rental assistance

Read More/Register: https://www.santamonica.gov/press/2022/04/13/santa-monica-to-host-virtual-fair-housing-workshop-on-april-26

Since vacancy decontrol began in 1999, rent controlled units reset to market rate whenever they are newly leased. In 2021, there was robust rental activity as 3,693 units entered new leases and median initial rent rates were significantly lower than those in 2020. 

The average price drop was most pronounced for rent controlled units of three or more bedrooms, which fell by more than 13 percent from a $4,600 median initial rent in 2020 to a $3,995 median initial rent in 2021. 

Read More: https://www.smdp.com/new-rent-control-leases-saw-dramatic-price-decline-in-2021/216871

A former assistant City Attorney, Perry became a champion of Santa Monica property owners after Rent Control was ushered in by local voters in 1979.

Read More: https://www.surfsantamonica.com/ssm_site/the_lookout/news/News-2022/April-2022/04_08_2022_Longtime_Santa_Monica_Landlord_Activist_Attorney_Dead_at_75.html

AND: https://www.smobserved.com/story/2022/04/11/news/longtime-santa-monica-attorney-rosario-perry-dead-at-75/6668.html

The Board will hold a public hearing on the feasibility of certain amendments to the City Charter during the Santa Monica Rent Control Board meeting on Thursday, April 14, 2022 at 7:00 p.m. via teleconference:

1)Whether the Board should recommend that the City of Santa Monica adopt an amendment to the City Charter requiring the registration of all non-rent-controlled rental units;

2)Whether the Board should recommend that Section 1806(a)(8)(iv) of the Rent Control Charter Amendment (RCCA) be amended to require that an owner intend to occupy the unit for at least three years instead of one year;

3)Whether the Board should recommend that Section 1806(a)(8)(v) of the RCCA be amended to require an owner to re-offer the unit to the displaced tenant if the owner fails to reside in the unit for at least three years and to allow an owner 60 days, instead of 30 days, to take occupancy of the unit.

4)Whether the Board should recommend that Section 1803(e) of the RCCA be amended to allow Commissioners to be elected to a maximum of three full terms to align with City elected officials; and

5)Whether the Board should recommend that Section 1803(d) of the RCCA be amended to state that an election need not be held if the number of qualified candidates does not exceed the number of open board positions. Instructions on accessing the meeting and speaking to the Board are provided in the agenda. The agenda and staff reports are available on the Board’s website at:  www. santamonica.gov /rentcontrol.

See Agenda on page 3: https://s3.amazonaws.com/smdp_backissues/041122.pdf

Here are some of the most notable efforts that are now underway.

Read More: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/a-snapshot-of-new-state-government-efforts-to-tackle-californias-housing-crisis/ar-AAW5Hgh?li=BBnbfcL

Residents of two Santa Monica neighborhoods are eligible to apply for LA County’s new $1,000 a month guaranteed income program. 

The program, called “Breathe”, launched on March 31 and will award 1,000 randomly selected qualifying residents $1,000 a month for three years. 

Read More: https://smmirror.com/2022/04/residents-in-certain-santa-monica-neighborhoods-eligible-for-la-county-guaranteed-income-program/

In this installment, we explore this proposed tax within the context of its role as a leading indicator of the fundamental restructuring of the city’s commercial and residential municipal revenue balance to fund the city’s ongoing, and growing, spending requirements.  

The long-term implications of this commercial and residential rebalancing go far beyond this proposed ballot initiative. While it may impact every resident with various taxes and fees, it will especially impact single-family homeowners, as Part II will discuss.  

Read More: https://smmirror.com/2022/04/sma-r-t-column-new-city-financial-plan-the-resident-homeowner-bank/

A slow growth Santa Monica group with a hefty legal warchest is taking on the city's biggest housing development in more than half a century, despite warnings the project can't be stopped under State law.

The Santa Monica Coalition for a Livable City (SMCLC) announced Thursday that it had "served objections to the completeness of the application" for the nearly 900,000-square-foot project at the Gelson's site at Lincoln and Ocean Park boulevards.

Read More: https://www.surfsantamonica.com/ssm_site/the_lookout/news/News-2022/April-2022/04_07_2022_Slow_Growth_Group_Launches_Battle_to_Stop_Project_on_Gelsons_Site.html