Emerging Threats to the Housing Market

"The median selling price for an El Dorado County home last month was $520,000 with two-thirds of those sold in escrow within 30 days at 99.99 percent of the listed price. Since the first of the year a total of 1,500 homes have closed escrow in the county at the collective median selling price of [...]

By |2018-07-30T21:02:10-07:00July 30th, 2018|Advocacy, Local Updates|

California Housing Crisis Collides With 2020 Presidential Race

"SAN FRANCISCO — If there’s a point of universal agreement in California politics, it’s that the state’s housing crisis has spiraled to urgent proportions. But a ballot initiative designed to tackle the prohibitive cost of housing stands to fracture Democrats here, pitting some of the state’s top elected officials against one another and placing [...]

By |2018-07-30T15:57:05-07:00July 30th, 2018|Advocacy, Local Updates|

Editorial: Tougher Rent Control Could Mean Millions in Tax Losses

"A November ballot measure to allow more rent control of California’s housing market could cost local and state tax coffers hundreds of millions of dollars. That’s the sobering bill for Proposition 10, billed as a tenant-pleasing antidote to the state’s critical housing ills. The figure comes from the state Legislative Analyst’s Office, an independent voice in what’s shaping up [...]

By |2018-07-27T22:01:07-07:00July 27th, 2018|Advocacy, Local Updates|

LAO: Prop 10 May Cost the State, Communities Millions While Freezing Housing Construction

"Anyone concerned about the future of the state and local budgets should pay particular attention to what the state’s non-partisan legislative analyst had to say about Proposition 10, the ballot measure that repeals the Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act, including protections for tenants and single-family home owners. The Legislative Analysts Office (LA) noted Prop 10 could [...]

By |2018-07-27T16:56:56-07:00July 27th, 2018|Advocacy, Local Updates|

Rent Control is Gaining Steam in California

"After nearly a quarter century of trying, tenant activists in California could be on the cusp of repealing the state law that forbids rent control from being applied to new housing units. Overturning limits on rent control will be on the ballot in California this November, now that organizers have garnered enough signatures to certify Proposition [...]

By |2018-07-26T22:25:49-07:00July 26th, 2018|Advocacy, Local Updates|

Rent Control: Knowing Who Your Friends Are

"Now that the California Democrat Party has heartily endorsed the statewide ballot initiative to repeal the Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act that limits local governments’ ability to impose rent control, property owners should be asking gubernatorial candidate Gavin Newsom and any Party candidate they are thinking about supporting in November:  will you publicly repudiate the recent action [...]

By |2018-07-26T22:14:24-07:00July 26th, 2018|Advocacy, Local Updates|

California Had a Chance to Fix It’s Housing Problem, and It Totally Blew It

"A couple months ago, California legislators shut down an attempt to make housing more affordable in the state. Now they’re moving forward with an alternative measure, but there’s a major problem — it probably won’t do anything. California suffers from a severe shortage of affordable housing. The state ranks 49th in the nation in housing density, a [...]

By |2018-07-25T16:26:08-07:00July 25th, 2018|Advocacy, Local Updates|

City of L.A. Seismic Retrofitting Survey

Attn. All L.A. City “Soft Story” Owners - take AAGLA’s Earthquake Seismic Retrofitting Survey today.  AAGLA is collecting important data regarding your seismic retrofitting experience with the goal of obtaining modifications to L.A. City’s earthquake retrofitting ordinance and asking L.A. City to help finance retrofitting costs.  If you have either completed, are in the process [...]

By |2018-07-24T22:29:22-07:00July 24th, 2018|Advocacy, Local Updates|

Letter: Tenants, Landlords Lose with Rent Control Measure

"Bad for tenants: First, it doesn’t lower rents or provide more or safer housing. Second, it encourages mom and pop single-family property owners to sell their rental properties due to the unreasonable demands of this measure taking these properties out of the rental market. Fewer available rentals equals higher rents. This dynamic is already [...]

By |2018-07-24T21:47:37-07:00July 24th, 2018|Advocacy, Local Updates|

California Gearing Up for Big Battle Over Rent Control

"Battle lines are forming over what could be one of the most contentious fights about housing in California in decades. I’m talking about Proposition 10, the November ballot initiative that would overturn California’s Costa-Hawkins Rent Control Act and let local governments impose any form of rent control on any type of rental housing within their jurisdictions. “The [...]

By |2018-07-23T21:25:23-07:00July 23rd, 2018|Advocacy, Local Updates|