Mobile home owners getting relief on rent in Sunnyvale
Mobile home owners in Sunnyvale have won a key victory against rising rents as new terms for long-term leases go out to owners this month.
The agreement caps rent increases for mobile home owners, limits monthly charges for new residents and could preserve home values in the city’s parks. Park owners believe the agreement, approved by the Sunnyvale City Council in July, will provide long-term stability for the affordable communities.
Owners have until Dec. 31 to sign the agreement, or choose to stick with their original leases, which may allow for higher annual increases. The ordinance is expected to cover about 10,000 residents in 10 parks.
“Sign it. Protect your assets,” said Gail Rubino, an El Dorado Mobile Home Park resident and one of the organizers of Sunnyvale Mobile Home Residents Stakeholder Group. Volunteers are handing out leaflets, knocking on doors and mailing postcards to reach owners and encourage them to sign up.
Bay Area mobile home parks are a haven of affordable housing in one of the country’s most expensive markets for homes and apartments. But in recent years, mobile home parks have been snapped up by national investors, often driving up rents and decreasing the value of homes. For every $100 per month increase in rent, mobile home values decrease about $10,000, according to industry estimates.
Many Bay Area counties and cities already have rent stabilization ordinances limiting increases on space rents: Alameda, Contra Costa and Sonoma counties are covered, as well as Concord, Daly City, East Palo Alto, Fremont, Hayward, Milpitas, San Jose and others, according to the Mobile Home Park Home Owners Allegiance.
Sunnyvale mobile home owners began petitioning the city for rent stabilization about five years ago as parks changed hands and rates for incoming residents began to rise.
Sunnyvale leaders rejected a rent stabilization proposal, and instead negotiated a 20-year agreement with the owners of 10 of the city’s 13 parks. The agreement, technically an amendment to existing leases, caps increases on yearly renewals at either 3% or 75% of the consumer price index — whichever is larger. For example, the CPI rose 5.4% in September from the previous year so renewal hikes would be capped at three-quarters of that percentage, or 4.05%.
Mayor Larry Klein noted the years-long process. “I’m glad we finally got to this point,” he said after he voted for the agreement.
The city has provided a website with additional information, including examples and different scenarios. Three parks are not included — Aloha, Ranchero and Thunderbird — because they are strictly rental.
Plaza Del Rey resident Fred Kameda said the agreement will make a “huge financial difference” for park residents.
Plaza Del Rey, a 95-acre park with 812 homes, was sold to private equity investor Carlyle Group in 2015. Residents say prices shot up quickly, with new owners seeing increases that nearly doubled previous rents.
Residents began to protest the increases, and drew the attention of U.S. Rep. Ro Khanna (D-santa Clara) in an effort to preserve their communities.
Chicago-based Hometown America, a privately held company with mobile home parks in a dozen states, bought Plaza Del Rey in 2019. The company has since been engaged with the city and park residents to find a longterm balance between fair rent increases and the preservation of home values.
COO Ken Kravenas said the agreement “gives clarity to all stakeholders, and we look forward to operating under the mutually agreed upon terms.”