Committee approves ban on 'renovictions' and directs housing department to set relocation rules

Los Angeles — The City Council Housing and Homelessness Committee on June 4 approved a measure to bar evictions that are based solely on “substantial remodel” work and instructed the Los Angeles Housing Department (LAHD) to create clear rules for how landlords and tenants should handle renovations that require temporary relocation.

The motion, introduced by Councilmember Bob Blumenfield and approved by the committee, adopts the Los Angeles Housing Department’s recommended “option 1” approach to remove substantial remodel as a termination reason under the city’s Just Cause for Eviction ordinance and directs LAHD to adopt procedures so renovations can proceed without displacing tenants. Councilmembers present voted aye; the roll call recorded three ayes and the item was approved as amended.

The action aims to close what advocates call a “substantial remodel loophole” used to legally remove tenants and then re-rent units at higher rates. Supporters told the committee that only a permanent ordinance will stop renovictions; landlords’ trade groups warned the change could impede necessary repairs.

Blumenfield said the city must both prevent abusive evictions and provide a clear process for legitimate renovations. He proposed that LAHD adopt rules that would let a landlord either pay a mutually agreed relocation amount or provide comparable temporary housing with the landlord paying relocation costs and rent for that temporary housing while the tenant is displaced. The recommended rules would also require tenants to continue paying rent to preserve their tenancy during temporary relocation and would require that tenants be returned to their unit with any post-renovation rent increase limited to the amount permitted under state law.

Anna Ortega, assistant general manager at LAHD, said the department can implement the steps Blumenfield outlined and noted a technical clarification on allowable rent increases: “It’s not necessarily 10%. It’s the amount allowed under state law, which is 5% plus the CPI. So right now, that’s 8.9.”

Public comment at the committee was heavily weighted toward adoption of LAHD’s option 1. Tenants and advocates said the change is needed to prevent displacement as the city pursues climate- and energy-related building upgrades. “Option 1 is the only real solution here. It fully eliminates substantial remodel as grounds for eviction,” Audit LA’s Chelsea Kirk told the committee. David Albright of the Los Angeles Tenants Union said, “The problem of rent evictions is absolutely endemic across Los Angeles,” and urged passage of a permanent ordinance.

Representatives of landlord groups argued against a full ban. Jesus Rojas of the Apartment Association of Greater Los Angeles said AGLA “strongly opposes option number 1” and warned that pausing certain renovation routes could prevent needed major system repairs and harm smaller ‘‘mom-and-pop’’ owners who lack spare units to temporarily relocate tenants.

The committee adopted Blumenfield’s request that LAHD update tenant- and landlord-facing information, publish FAQs, and work with the Rent Adjustment Commission to produce rules and regulations implementing the ordinance change. The committee also directed LAHD and the City Attorney to prepare an ordinance amending the Just Cause for Eviction ordinance and to provide the council with the proposed rules concurrently, so the ban and implementing guidance can be adopted together.

Committee members said the city must adopt a permanent ordinance before July 1 to avoid a lapse in protections and to provide a clear process that allows necessary remodels without facilitating renovictions. The committee’s action sends the matter forward for the city attorney to draft the ordinance and for LAHD to prepare the implementing rules and public materials.