Oxnard tenants say landlords retaliated after rent-cap complaints; city manager pledges legal action

Dozens of tenants told the Oxnard City Council on Jan. 7 that they faced harassment and retaliatory actions after using the city's rent-protections and eviction rules.

The accounts centered on two apartment complexes and a cluster of properties where residents said they had filed complaints under two city ordinances that limit rent increases and regulate evictions. "We are being harassed and retaliated against when we file complaints relating to the ordinances that protect us," resident Jesus Vasquez Luna said through an interpreter, referencing Ordinances 3012 and 3013 passed by the council in May 2022.

Why it matters: Tenants and tenant advocates said the city's consumer-protection ordinances are only effective if renters can use them without fear of intimidation, loss of property or other pressures. Many of the speakers told council members the retaliation included unusually large rent-increase petitions, new storage charges for belongings kept during repairs, eviction or termination notices and apparent changes to apartment numbers that disrupted delivery of important mail.

The…