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(Added by Ord. No. 184,673, Eff. 1/25/17.)
A. Purpose. The Tenant Buyout Notification Program provides for regulation, monitoring and enforcement of voluntary vacancies of RSO rental units occurring pursuant to a Buyout Agreement. To promote fairness during buyout negotiations and agreements, this section requires tenants be informed of their RSO rights before executing a Buyout Agreement.
1. The Rent Adjustment Commission may promulgate regulations to implement this section.
B. Definitions. The following words and phrases, whenever used in this section, shall be construed as defined in this section. Words and phrases not defined in this section shall be construed as defined in Section 151.02 of this Chapter, if defined therein.
Buyout Agreement. A written agreement where a landlord pays a tenant money or offers other consideration to voluntarily vacate an RSO rental unit.
Buyout Offer. An offer, written or oral, by a landlord to a tenant to pay money or other consideration to vacate an RSO unit.
C. RSO Disclosure Notice. Before making a Buyout Offer, the landlord shall provide the tenant(s) with the RSO Disclosure Notice of tenant rights on a form authorized by the Department, which shall be dated and signed by the landlord and the tenant(s).
D. Buyout Agreement Requirements.
1. Written Buyout Agreement.
a. Every Buyout Agreement shall be written in the primary language of the tenant and state in a minimum of 12-point bold type above the tenant signature line as follows:
“You, (tenant name), may cancel this Buyout Agreement any time up to 30 days after all parties have signed this Agreement without any obligation or penalty.”
b. Every Buyout Agreement shall be signed and dated by the landlord and tenant.
c. A copy of the fully executed Buyout Agreement shall be given to the tenant.
2. Cancellation of Buyout Agreement.
a. A tenant shall have the right to cancel a Buyout Agreement for any reason for up to 30 days after execution by the landlord and the tenant without any financial obligation or penalty.
b. Whenever an RSO Disclosure Notice and/or Buyout Agreement does not conform to the requirements of this section or RAC Regulations, the tenant shall have the right to cancel the Buyout Agreement through the applicable statute of limitations period.
3. Filing Executed RSO Disclosure Notice and Buyout Agreement. The landlord shall file with the Department copies of the RSO Disclosure Notice signed by the tenant and the landlord, and the Buyout Agreement within 60 days of the Buyout Agreement execution.
E. Affirmative Defense. A violation of this section may be asserted as an affirmative defense in an unlawful detainer action.
F. Private Right of Action. A tenant may bring a private right of action against a landlord who violates a provision of this section and recover damages and a penalty of $500.
(Added by Ord. No. 186,607, Eff. 5/14/20.)
The maximum adjusted rent of any occupied rental unit may not be increased unless necessary to obtain a just and reasonable return, until one year following the termination of the local emergency. “Local emergency” is defined as the local emergency declared by the Mayor on or about March 4, 2020, and ratified by City Council, in connection with the COVID-19 pandemic.
(Added by Ord. No. 187,109, Eff. 8/6/21.)
Tenants in all RSO rental units are protected from harassment as provided in Article 5.3 of Chapter IV of the Los Angeles Municipal Code. In addition to the prohibited conduct listed in Section 45.33 of this Code, tenant harassment includes offering payments to a tenant to vacate their unit without providing written notice to the tenant of their rights under Section 151.31 of this Code (Tenant Buyout Notification Program), using the form prescribed by the Department. However, this shall not prohibit offers made in pending unlawful detainer actions.
(Added by Ord. No. 188,071, Eff. 1/24/24.)
During the period commencing February 1, 2024, and ending on June 30, 2024, the maximum adjusted rent of any occupied rental unit may be increased once without permission of the Rent Adjustment Commission or Department in an amount not to exceed four percent (4%). If the landlord pays all the costs of electricity and/or gas services for a rental unit then the maximum adjusted rent may be increased an additional one percent (1%) for each such service paid by the landlord, not to exceed a total of an additional two percent (2%).
This section shall be repealed and terminate at the end of June 30, 2024.
(Added by Ord. No. 188,071, Eff. 1/24/24.)
If any provision of this chapter is found to be unconstitutional or otherwise invalid by any court of competent jurisdiction, that invalidity shall not affect the remaining provisions of this chapter which can be implemented without the invalid provisions, and to this end, the provisions of this chapter are declared to be severable. The City Council hereby declares that it would have adopted this chapter and each provision thereof irrespective of whether any one or more provisions are found invalid, unconstitutional or otherwise unenforceable.
(Added by Ord. No. 176,544, Eff. 5/2/05.)
Section
152.00 Title.
152.01 Declaration of Purpose.
152.02 Definitions.
152.03 Procedure for Undertaking Primary Renovation Work.
152.04 Notice and Service Requirements.
152.05 Permanent Relocation Assistance.
152.06 Temporary Relocation and Temporary Replacement Housing.
152.07 Remedies.
152.08 Authority of Commission to Regulate.
(Added by Ord. No. 176,544, Eff. 5/2/05.)
In its adoption of Section 151.00 et seq. of this Code, the City recognized that displacement from rental housing creates hardships on renters who are senior citizens, persons on fixed incomes and low and moderate income households, particularly when there is a shortage of decent, safe and sanitary housing at affordable rent levels in the City. The City has also declared, in its adoption of Section 161.101 et seq. of this Code, that it is in the public interest of the people of Los Angeles to protect and promote the existence of sound and wholesome residential buildings, dwelling units and neighborhoods by the adoption and enforcement of such standards, regulations and procedures as will remedy the existence or prevent the development or creation of dangerous, substandard, or unsanitary and deficient residential buildings and dwelling units.
The primary renovation program has been established to encourage landlords to extend the useful life of the rental housing stock in Los Angeles by reinvesting in the infrastructure of their properties. Through rent adjustments authorized by this chapter, landlords are able to recover a substantial portion of these renovation costs. However, Primary Renovation Work involves the replacement or substantial modification of major building systems or the abatement of hazardous materials and, by its very nature, such work generally makes rental units untenantable, as defined by California Civil Code Section 1941.1, on a temporary basis.
This article is adopted to facilitate landlord investment in Primary Renovation Work without subjecting tenants to either untenantable housing conditions during such renovation work or forced permanent displacement. The tenant habitability program requires landlords to mitigate such temporary untenantable conditions, either through actions to ensure that tenants can safely remain in place during construction or through the temporary relocation of tenants to alternative housing accommodations. These two options should not be regarded as mutually exclusive but rather as complementary approaches that might be appropriate to different stages of the renovation process.
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