Since California updated its statewide legal protections for tenants in 2020, San Diegans have been debating updating the city’s own renter protections to provide a greater degree of protection for locals. Now, city officials are poised to implement a new series of regulations designed to update the cities original renter protection laws from 2004 to provide greater protections for tenants.
Renters in San Diego currently only have the state minimum protections
When the state updated its renter protection laws in 2020, renters gained additional protections that went beyond those that San Diego had adopted in 2004. However, due to the state giving local renter protections priority under the law, renters in San Diego have not gained the benefit of these protections. This has prompted the city to begin considering an update to its existing regulations to better serve renters. The culmination of these efforts has resulted in the proposal that will both give greater protections to tenants during no-fault evictions, however, it also provides greater clarity to landlords in how to handle their clients.
How these changes will help renters
Some of the primary ways that the proposed ordinance seeks to serve tenants are by providing protections at the beginning of a lease term. For all tenants except for those with leases of less than three months, they will now have all protections at the start of their lease, rather applying later under the existing law. Renters will also receive more information about their rights from the city when they move.
One major concern for city officials has been the rise in no-fault evictions due to renovations of apartment units with no assistance. Now, tenants are entitled to at least two months of rent relocation assistance, not including their security deposit, as well as greater clarity for when a no-fault eviction is permissible for renovations. Greater notice is also now required for tenants when renovations are imminent, and relocation options will be increased to help them find new housing.
Lastly, the law provides tenants with greater legal remedies if they file a lawsuit against their landlord, including attorneys fees, additional damages, and the ability to obtain a buyout agreement.
Debate continues after May 16th meeting
Efforts to better tailor the proposed ordinance continues, as interest parties continue to provide input on the changes being considered. As the city gets closer to a final decision, renters should pay close attention to see how these changes might help them.
