First, do no harm: Were that the steadfast litmus test for all political policies, we’d have far less division in our society. Oftentimes, the initial intentions are sincere, but the advocate’s enthusiasm overshadows the predictable and negative consequences. Yes, I’m talking about the recent local rent control initiative which would be in addition to the statewide law passed back in January.
A legal contract between private entities should remain exactly that, i.e. private. Inserting a one-size-fits-all presence limits the freedom and discretion of both parties and assumes an adversarial relationship. While a sense of protection for the tenant is the intended purpose, these restrictions can be problematic for the number of available rentals and the development of new rental units.
Many small landlords are entertaining the idea of simply liquidating and getting out of the business altogether. Others are deferring cosmetic improvements to their properties as this action would either lengthen the time to recoup their investment or jeopardize their standing with a lending institution. Multi-unit landlords are seeing exorbitant relocation fees required. Still others see difficulty in removing a disruptive tenant for the benefit and quality of life for the other tenants in the complex.