San Diego County Rental Fee Ordinance Update

Yesterday, November 4, the Board of Supervisors, on a 3-2 vote, approved moving forward with the “Protecting Residential Rental Applicants and Tenants from Price Gouging and Fee Exploitation ordinance.” SCRHA testified against the proposal citing existing laws and best practices, increased operational costs, and unintended consequences such as increased rents. Chair Terra Lawson-Remer, who ultimately voted yes, expressed concerns with some of the proposed items, including the pet and late fee components, and asked for clarity on stakeholder involvement. She also asked if the author, Supervisor Montgomery-Steppe, would take amendments to include evaluating a different level of accountability for “mom and pop” landlords. Montgomery-Steppe refused to alter the items at all, citing possible loopholes. Supervisors Anderson and Desmond voted no, with Desmond citing SCRHA’s letter and the need to do outreach to groups like SCRHA. Anderson expressed concerns about the lack of stakeholder input and discouraging new construction in the unincorporated county. Montgomery-Steppe balked at formalizing the stakeholder engagement process and instead left it for individual Supervisors to do on their own. Lawson-Remer also referenced the City of San Diego proposal and asked if the process could align in hopes of having some sort of symmetry between the two proposals, which Montgomery-Steppe also refused. Newly elected Supervisor Paloma Aguirre co-authored the proposal and also voted in favor. A report back with a draft ordinance is expected in 90 days.

SCRHA would like to thank all the members who called or wrote to Supervisors. Your concerns were heard despite the outcome.

SCRHA members, along with members of our network of real estate and business allies, utilized the SCRHA Action Center to send over 1,600 messages to elected officials for both the County and City proposals!

SCRHA will be strongly engaging on both proposals in hopes of defeating the measures or severely minimizing the negative impacts. Make sure you are signed up for SCRHA Action Alerts so you can make your voice heard when these proposals return. 

Click here to learn more about the City Proposal. 

Click here to learn more about the County Proposal.