Concord's new rent rules go into effect

Policies offer protections, allowances for evictions, caps monthly increases

Concord implemented new rent stabilization and just cause eviction laws Friday — 41 days after a group of residents attempted to require that voters weigh in on November ballots.

In February, the City Council approved a tenant protections ordinance that increased just cause eviction protections to most of the city's tenants and established rent stabilization for roughly half its rental stock — intended to help ease the anxieties and financial hardships renters face when being pushed out of housing.

Within three days of the ordinance's adoption, Jo Sciarroni, a real estate broker and property manager who has lived in Concord for decades, submitted a referendum petition to the city clerk on March 8, requesting that residents first be allowed to vote on the issue in the general election.

That referendum petition was withdrawn Thursday after organizers informed city staff that they would not be able to gather the required 7,204 signatures by Thursday's deadline.

As a result, the ordinance will go into effect as written — realizing an effort that's been underway since 2016, including eight marathon meetings and dozens of hours of public comment since January 2023.

Several local nonprofits that advocate for tenant rights — including the East Bay Alliance for a Sustainable Economy, Monument Impact, the Contra Costa Labor Council and Todos Santos Tenants Union — lauded the news Friday.

Rhea Elina Laughlin, executive director of Rising Juntos, said renting families finally will be able to “breathe a sigh of relief.”

“We are thrilled that the people of Concord have spoken again in favor of people over corporate greed,” Laughlin said. “Concord understands that when our neighbors are housed safely and with dignity, we are a stronger city.”

The rules dictating what landlords can and cannot do — as well as how renters can respond — are complex and are not applied

in the same way across all homes. (The full 30-page ordinance and broad summaries are posted at cityofconcord.org.)

For example, the new rules cap rent increases for multifamily rental units built before February 1, 1995, at 3% or 60% of the consumer price index, whichever is lower. Additionally, landlords would be required to pay relocation assistance for no-fault evictions of most rental units in Concord; for single-family homes and condominiums, that sum is equal to two months of the tenant's current rent, plus a $2,000 moving stipend.

Notably, Concord residents who live in accessory dwelling units, government-owned housing or on the other side of an owner-occupied duplex, among others, do not have any protections for rent stabilization and just-cause evictions.

While these policies still are relatively rare — of the 538 cities and counties in California, only 26 have enacted rent stabilization policies, while 43 include just cause for eviction policies beyond state law — Concord is now aligned with similar efforts in Berkeley,

Oakland and Richmond.

After the February vote, Councilmember Laura Nakamura said she hoped that the ordinance will help create a sustainable housing market and prevent residents from being displaced or falling into homelessness. While she vowed to revisit the issue if problems arise for local property owners, she noted that 78% of all rental homes are owned by investors from outside of Concord.

“I am very excited to see that this will stabilize our community, our neighbors, and that people will hopefully feel secure in their homes,” Nakamura said during the Feb. 13 council meeting. “Tenants in Concord have not had a lot of choices and I think tonight that this really centers the voices of the people who really have needed our help.”

Some concerns still lingered for Councilmember Laura Hoffmeister and Vice Mayor Carlyn Obringer, who worried Concord landlords would be caught off guard or further financially burdened by the new policies. Attempting to mitigate unintended consequences, several restrictions for property owners were loosened before the law's language was approved in a 4-1 vote, with Hoffmeister dissenting.

For example, the council lowered the residency

requirements for property owners who move into a unit after evicting the previous tenant. That timeline was set at 24 months and exceptions may be given in the event of significant hardships, such as an unexpected medical or family emergency.

Additionally, while the policies require that landlords petition a hearing officer for the ability to charge more if they feel its necessary to get a fair return on their investments, the council supported the right for both tenants and landlords to file lawsuits on their own volition.

However, community members such as Sciarroni remain adamant that their voices have not been heard.

In March, she said that she decided to file the petition because it was a better option than “sitting back, doing nothing and allowing four people (on the City Council) to make a decision that affects 130,000 people in Concord — tenants, landlords and property owners.”

“We should continue next in November with the election of new councilmembers who will consider all Concord citizens when making (decisions) that affect your livelihood,” Sciarroni said in a NextDoor post Thursday. “Although we didn't win this battle, the war is not over.”