I debated long and hard with myself regarding whether to tackle the very sensitive subject I will discuss below. I had decided not to write what follows. But [then] I changed my mind and decided to go ahead with it, controversial as it is, because whatever decision our leaders make just ahead on the coronavirus…
“San Diego apartment buildings are outrageously expensive! The cash flow is wretched. What do you think about going to the 40 other states with dramatically higher cash flow and lower prices?” The experienced landlady was asking me whether her son should use his $80,000 and buy a fourplex in Arizona or somewhere else where the…
A new survey indicates that one in four Americans were not able to pay their April housing bill in full, according to Apartment List. The survey showed half of those respondents were able to make a partial payment to their lender or landlord, while the other half made no payment at all. And one in…
On April 6, 2020, the California Judicial Council, the policymaking body of the California Courts, approved and adopted emergency rules regarding evictions. Although Governor Newsom and cities such as Los Angeles had previously enacted orders, these new rules supersede existing laws regarding the filing of unlawful detainer actions. Under the new California Rules of Court,…
As most of you are aware, in 2016, HUD released guidance for all housing providers regarding how the use of criminal background checks could potentially violate fair housing laws. The guidance outlines how using criminal background screening to deny housing can create a disparate impact (discriminatory effect) based on race due to the higher incarceration…
Q: I heard on the morning news that the governor of the state of California declared a state of emergency for California. What that does that mean?
Hello everybody. This month let’s discuss AIRBNBs and how they may relate to the coronavirus (“CV”). Some 40 years ago, cities in California began passing rent control ordinances regulating rents in older apartment buildings, but they exempted all new construction (so that contractors would not be deterred from building new multifamily housing units). Last year,…
It’s no secret that public sector labor organizations hate Proposition 13 because it remains one of the few barriers to their unfettered access to our wallets and pocketbooks. Whether in the courts, legislature, initiative measures or “public education” campaigns, their relentless resistance to that landmark initiative has continued unabated for over forty years. Much to…
As we make our way through the current crisis, many owners are asking themselves what will happen to all the equity they earned in the last 10 years. The sad truth is that values will drop for the foreseeable future while the pandemic spreads. And after it is all over, we are likely to see…
Throughout history, there have been numerous “Dynamic Duos”. Batman and Robin, Laurel and Hardy (for us oldsters), R2D2 and C3PO and John Wayne and anyone. And of course, the greatest dynamic duo of all times, peanut butter and jelly. But there is another Dynamic Duo that more real estate brokers are beginning to use that…