San Leandro council adopts rent-registry ordinance; staff to implement enforcement plan

San Leandro City Council voted unanimously Monday to adopt a rent-registry ordinance that will require property owners to register rental units with the city.

The ordinance, adopted after public comment and a brief staff explanation, is intended to create a centralized dataset of the city’s housing stock. Proponents said the registry will help officials and residents better understand rental availability and trends.

The council adopted the ordinance following a public comment from Douglas Spalding, who said he supports the registry but worried landlords might refuse to register in response to outreach from the East Bay Rental Housing Association. “What we cannot live with, what we cannot tolerate is housing providers who do not end up registering,” Spalding told the council, and he asked what enforcement steps the city would use if landlords boycott the program.

Tom Liao, the city’s community development director, told the council staff expects a phased implementation and enforcement program. “Ultimately…there would be penalties, like citations potentially if people are not [registered],” Liao said. He added that future rent increases that require registration under the ordinance would not be effective for landlords who fail to register, meaning the city could deny increases tied to units that have not been entered into the registry.

Council members expressed no substantive changes before the vote. The motion to adopt the ordinance passed unanimously.

Implementation and next steps

City staff said the first months of the program will be a transition period focused on public education, outreach and staffing, and that enforcement will ramp up over time. Liao described the city’s approach as phased: outreach and notification first, then citations and administrative penalties when the program is fully staffed and operational. He also said registration rules will aim to capture all units, including smaller accessory dwelling units, to create a complete inventory of the city’s housing stock.

Council and members of the public asked staff to return with clearer enforcement timelines and to outline how the city will respond to organized noncompliance by landlord groups. The ordinance language adopted by the council and the council vote record will be available from the city clerk’s office.

Ending

The council took the vote during its consent-calendar period and moved on to other agenda items. City staff will return with implementation details and outreach plans as the registry moves toward full operation.