Emeryville Eviction Control &
The Residential Landlord and Tenant Relations Ordinance

Effective April 1, 2017, rental housing providers in Emeryville must adhere to the Residential Landlord and Tenant Relations Ordinance. According to the language of the ordinance, the purpose and intent was to adopt a new Chapter 40 of Title 5 of the Emeryville Municipal Code, in order to “increase certainty and fairness in the residential market in the City by addressing just cause eviction, anti-harassment, and relocation assistance”.

The Ordinance is applicable to most Emeryville rental properties, but exempts motels, hotels and certain other lodging units, nonprofit cooperative housing, and those units that are afforded an exemption under the Costa Hawkins Housing Act, generally single-family homes and new construction. Of course, there are many nuances in the law, so to determine if Emeryville rent control governs your building, you are well-advised to seek guidance from a qualified landlord lawyer.

Emeryville’s eviction control ordinance made a significant change by prohibiting a landlord from terminating a tenancy unless they have “just cause”, such as failure to pay rent, breach of rental contract, failure to allow access to the unit and other enumerated just cause reasons. In this respect, Emeryville’s ordinance is modeled after Oakland, Berkeley, Richmond and other Bay Area rent-controlled jurisdictions.

When the tenant is transitioned out of the rental unit, they may be entitled to relocation assistance if the termination qualifies as “No Fault”. Such a scenario might involve an Owner Move-In Eviction (OMI), the sale of the property, Ellis Act, and the owner’s desire to make substantial renovations. The amount of relocation assistance can be a tricky formula, once again warranting the assistance of a qualified real estate attorney.

Emeryville's law also aims to combat harassing behavior against tenants, such as refusing to make necessary repairs, removal of personal property from the unit or turning down rent, among other behaviors that are deemed harassing in nature.

Landlords are also required to serve Emeryville residents a “Notice of Tenant Rights” in a prescribed fashion. This is but one of the many procedural requirements that are best approached with an attorney. Contact us today.

Rent control applies in some form or fashion in the following locales.

 

» San Francisco

» Oakland

» Berkeley

» San Jose

» Emeryville

» Alameda

» Hayward

» Richmond

» Mountain View

 

For informed advice when controversies arise in your rent controled unit, reach out to Bornstein Law. 

Contact our landlord lawyers →