Council asks Housing Department to review REAP backlog after members cite long delays and low escrow collections

Councilmember Hernandez on July 18 asked the Los Angeles Housing Department to review procedures and pursue options to speed remediation for properties enrolled in the Rent Escrow Account Program (REAP), saying many buildings had remained in the program for years with minimal escrow dollars collected.

Hernandez, who represents a district with a high number of properties in REAP, told colleagues he has 111 buildings in the program representing about 1,600 housing units and that some properties had been in the program since the early 1990s. "The goal should not be to have something in REAP forever. The goal should be to get something out of REAP as soon as possible," he said, citing one unit on Pico Boulevard that had accumulated only $721 in escrow.

Councilmembers from across the chamber supported a motion asking the Housing Department to report back with recommendations on how to give the department additional tools and authority to address long-standing substandard housing cases, improve interagency coordination among the various enforcement programs and propose budgetary or procedural changes. Councilmember Feuer emphasized the need to clarify coordination among the "alphabet soup" of agencies and programs that touch substandard housing and urged attention to potential budgetary needs to accelerate remediation.

The council approved the motion (item 35) by voice vote (recorded as 14 ayes). The Housing Department has said it supports a review of REAP. Staff were instructed to return with a plan that addresses how to reduce long REAP stays and improve outcomes for tenants.