TENANTS LEGAL CENTER
OF SAN DIEGO
SAN DIEGO NEWS AND UPDATES
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SMOKE FREE HOUSING?
California recently rejected a bill meant to provide for smoke free housing. So may people are negatively impacted by being forced to breath second hand smoke while others still want the right to smoke even knowing the dangers to themselves and others. Read a recent article in the UT and cast your vote on whether you would prefer housing to be smoke free or not.
LANDLORDS MAY NOT DEMAND ELECTRONIC RENT OR DEPOSIT PAYMENTS
For 2013, SB 1055 was signed into law on September 7, 2012. It provides that ..." a landlord
or a landlord's agent shall allow a tenant to pay rent and deposit of security by at least one form of payment that is neither
cash nor electronic funds transfer.' This will be a great relief to tenants being forced to pay by bank transfers or other web payment methods when they do not want to do that. Such transfers systems robbed tenants of their privacy and
forced many into a default situation when their deposits came right after a rent withdrawal was made electronically.
They can still voluntarily agree in a lease to have an electronic payment method.
COURTS ANNOUNCE MORE CUTS IN HOURS
San Diego County Courts close on FRIDAYS at NOON (starting 9/5/12).
APARTMENT RENTS EXPECTED TO RISE IN 2012
"Rents are expected to rise and competition for apartments may stiffen in San Diego County as more folks defer owning a home amid what appears to be a slowly improving job market. Rising demand from young workers — also known as Gen Y’ers — fewer new units and tighter standards for mortgages also have pushed people into the rental market. The result is a jump in rental rates. In March, the average rent in the county was $1,361, up 2.6 percent from a year ago, says real estate data company MarketPointe." read the full story in the UT
STATE PROGRAM TO ASSIST HOMEOWNERS THAT ARE "UNDERWATER"
The San Diego Public Policy Examiner reports that there are some ".. new changes in "Keep Your Home California" a program run by California Housing Finance, San Diego homeowners whose homes are underwater may qualify to keep their home if their income level is no more than $89,900."
UPDATE on the National Mortgage Settlement
SURVIVORS OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING OR COMMERCIAL SEXUAL EXPLOITATION AMONG THOSE TO GET HOUSING ASSISTANCE
March 18, 2012 - New regional projects have just received more than $1.7 million in federal funding. The new projects will provide transitional and long-term housing and support services for homeless people. “The missing piece has been housing,” said Supervisor Dianne Jacob. “Now the federal government is providing $200,000 over two years to fund six transitional housing beds and services for homeless women who are survivors of human trafficking or commercial sexual exploitation.” The project will be located in an unincorporated area of the County and is sponsored by the non-profit organization GenerateHOPE. Other projects in the works are the Vista Terrace Project, a 47-unit complex in Vista, (North County Solutions for Change) and the new Connections Housing Project in the rehabilitated World Trade Center in downtown San Diego (People Assisting the Homeless).
TENANTS CHECKING CREDIT OF LANDLORDS?
With so many foreclosures, maybe it is time tenants check the credit of landlords before renting. Some landlords who face foreclosure will rent the home to unsuspecting tenants collecting rent all the way to losing the home at a foreclosure sale. They collect rent but do not pay the mortgage since they are planning to let the home go. The problem is that the tenants do not know about the owner's plans and think they are leasing a secure home. These tenants become victims because they leased a home on the edge of foreclosure which will lead to their eviction, regardless of the lease. Tenants can actually research the risk of foreclosure before renting and moving in. Anyone can access public records in San Diego to see if there is a NOTICE OF DEFAULT (NOD) on the property. Once one of these is issued, the owner has time to cure the default before the sale. Clearly, tenants who discover a NOD should understand that beginning to or continuing to rent that home carries the risk of being evicted by the lender after a foreclosure. Innocent tenants displaced by a foreclosure may also make a claim against the prior owner for breach of the lease and perhaps even a claim for damages based on fraud.
REPRESENTING YOURSELF
IN DEFENDING AN EVICTION?
DON'T DO IT
Tenants here are still losing valuable rights by handling their own eviction defense. Defending yourself in an eviction case in San Diego, in the vast majority of cases, is court "suicide". Statistically, most all tenants who represent themselves in eviction court will lose or be tricked into signing a bad settlement. Using any self help assistance service or book creates a serious risk that you will lose your case, regardless of your rights. Having someone prepare your papers without them being available to represent you in court is very dangerous. This is because eviction cases and trials are so complex that a skilled attorney is really necessary to properly handle these matters. Even with settlements, remember the landlord is motivated to settle the case with your attorney, not you. This is because, they are not afraid of you in court, only your attorney. By the way, this situation is pretty much the same for landlords. Many landlords have represented themselves in court against a skilled tenant's rights attorney and learned the hard way just how technical and difficult these cases can be. Coming in second in trial (i.e. losing) for a landlord who just assumed they would easily win can be a real eye opener.
LANDLORDS ABUSING THEIR
POWER OF EVICTION
Many San Diego tenants are still receiving eviction notices for minor and trivial reasons. San Diego County is still a "no cause" eviction jurisdiction. San Diego City, however, is now a just cause eviction jurisdiction after the first two years of a tenancy according to the City ordinance. Landlords continue to seek only the "best" or "their favorite" tenants and tend to evict the rest. These desired tenants can be the good timely paying tenants or simply those tenants willing to accept abuse and unfair treatment without complaint.
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California law for San Diego is applied in these pages. Such laws may or may not be applicable in other jurisdictions and may no longer be applicable. The information provided herein is of a general nature and is not intended to be taken as specific legal advice. Legal summaries are only the opinion of the Tenants Legal Center and are not intended nor should they be relied upon as any specific representation of any law. For legal advice in a particular situation, promptly consult with an appropriate attorney.