The Pacific Legal Foundation, a pro-property rights public interest law firm, recently filed a lawsuit challenging a Seattle law that forbids landlords from picking and choosing among potential tenants. The purpose of the new regulation is to combat implicit or subconscious bias by landlords:

Seattle is apparently breaking new ground by requiring landlords in the city to rent their housing units to qualified applicants on a first-come, first-served basis....

The goal is to ensure prospective renters are treated equally, according to Councilmember Lisa Herbold, who championed the policy. When landlords pick one renter among multiple qualified applicants, their own biases — conscious or unconscious — may come into play, she says....

Read More: http://reason.com/volokh/2017/12/28/seattle-bans-landlords-from-screening-te

After years of delay, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency must propose tighter limits on the amount of lead allowed inside homes within 90 days to protect children from the hazards of lead paint, a federal appeals court ruled Wednesday.

In a 2-1 ruling, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco found the EPA has a duty to update its standards on lead dust in the interiors of homes following years of scientific evidence that the current rules are insufficient to prevent lead poisoning.

Read More: http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-lead-poisoning-20171227-story.html

Expect more focus on housing issues at the Capitol and on your statewide ballot in 2018. Here are three to watch.

1. A rent control battle

2. The future of Proposition 13

3. How lawmakers will follow up on this year’s housing efforts

Read More: http://www.latimes.com/politics/la-pol-ca-housing-stories-to-watch-20171227-htmlstory.html

Part 1: January - April 2017

Read More: http://smdp.com/163669/163669

Part 2: May - August 2017

Read More: http://smdp.com/year-in-review-part-2/163673

Part 3: September-December 2017

Read More: http://smdp.com/year-in-review-part-3/163678

Marin landlords will now be required to enter into mediation with their tenants if they increase rents more than 5 percent within a 12-month period.

The Board of Supervisors voted unanimously Tuesday to adopt an ordinance imposing the new requirement. The mediation requirement also will be triggered if a landlord reduces services to a tenant, if that service reduction is equivalent to more than a 5 percent rent hike. Landlords will be required to notify their tenants of the new ordinance by Feb. 12.

Read More: http://www.marinij.com/business/20171213/marin-landlords-to-enter-mediation-before-hiking-rents

If you own rental property in the City of Los Angeles, it may be subject to the city’s Rent Stabilization Ordinance (RSO). Find out if your property falls under this ordinance and what you need to know to be in compliance. 

Generally, the RSO applies to rental properties that were first built on or before October 1, 1978 as well as replacement units under LAMC Section 151.28 and is any of the following:

• Apartment
• Condominium
• Townhome
• Duplex
• Two or more single family dwelling units on the same parcel
• Rooms in a hotel, motel, rooming house or boarding house occupied by the same tenant for 30 or more consecutive days
• Residential unit(s) attached to a commercial building

It has been a year for the record books! While a Santa Monica Observer Intern goes to Washington and writes speeches for a Republican president, 3 of 7 members of the SMMUSD Board end up under investigation for conflict of interest.

In no particular order, here our our top ten stories of 2017:

1. DISTRICTING LAWSUIT - The City has spent several million $ already and plans to keep fighting a losing battle

2. SMRR supposed to mean Santa Monicans for Renters Rights but has morphed into a pro-developer party now more accurately described as SMRR - Santa Monicans for Ruling Residents

Read More: http://www.smobserved.com/story/2017/12/23/news/santa-monica-in-transition-top-ten-local-news-stories-of-2017/3262.html

Santa Monica school district's conflict of interest investigation expands to three board members.

Santa Monica school district’s conflict of interest investigation has grown to include three of the board’s seven members, a school district official confirmed Friday.

The Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District’s probe initially focused on Maria Leon-Vazquez, whose husband worked as a paid consultant to at least two district vendors.

Read More:  http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-santa-monica-schools-outside-agency-20171222-story.html

A six-story apartment complex may be on the way to Pico Boulevard, just two blocks south of the Expo/Bundy light rail stop in Sawtelle.

Planned for 12300 West Pico Boulevard, the project would rise from the site of what’s now an adult bookstore, bringing 65 units of housing to the area.

Taking advantage of new incentives for projects close to transit lines, the developer plans to set aside 10 units in the building for tenants earning under half of the area’s median income. 

Read More:   https://la.curbed.com/2017/12/18/16790888/west-la-development-sawtelle-expo-line-apartments

AirBnb has shifted its strategy to overturn Santa Monica’s restrictive short-term rental ordinance, amending a legal complaint against the city to focus on the California Coastal Act in addition to Federal law. The legal maneuver came as the Coastal Commission overturned Laguna Beach’s outright ban on AirBnb rentals in residential neighborhoods. 

Lawyers for AirBnb say Santa Monica’s ordinance, which only allows home-sharing when the host is present, severely restricts the supply of lower-cost vacation rentals, making it harder for low and moderate-income Californians to access the coast.

Read More: http://backissues.smdp.com/122317.pdf

AND

http://smdp.com/short-term-rental-giant-amends-lawsuit-against-santa-monica/163667