“Some people always know the price, but not the value.” Oscar Wilde

I recently wrote about the proposed and long awaited 7% rent raise for Los Angeles which includes tenants in unincorporated areas and some others. This is supposed to take place in January of 2024, allowing for the new rents for February. The Apartment Owners Association sent an email the other day about Item 19, introduced by County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath. This will stall the much needed raise until June of 2024.

WHAT ARE THEY ASKING? Item 19 calls for a roll back of our agreed upon 7% raise for 6 months. It also calls for a 90 day period for the Department of Consumer and Business Affairs (DCBA) to “report back with recommendations to the Rent Stabilization and Tenant Protections Ordinance, based on an assessment of recently enacted rent control formulas from jurisdictions in the County of Los Angeles, taking into account the potential impacts of rental increases under the current formula for tenants in rent stabilized units in unincorporated Los Angeles County.” There are currently around 125 communities in the Los Angeles area that meet the criteria. These include such areas as Altadena, parts of East Los Angeles, Florence and South Whittier, just to name a few! If you are not sure, check with Los Angeles County to make sure.

WHO IS AFFECTED? Since this is being promoted by County Supervisor Horvath, it would include unincorporated areas of Los Angeles County. If you are not sure,

your property may be in a newly incorporated area of Los Angeles County, such as Malibu (1991) or West Hollywood (1984). It is not likely, but if you have owned your building for a long time, you might want to check.

WHAT CAN I DO? 1) You can make a public comment. You can do it in person (500 W Temple St Los Angeles 90012) on Tuesday November 7 at 9:30. . You can also do this by phone. Call 877-226-8163 and enter code 1336503. 2) You can contact YOUR supervisor and send them a letter. The California Apartment Association has a sample letter which I would be happy to send to you if you would like. You could even send a tweet.

It’s your property and your rights, so be vigilant and don’t give up the rent adjustments that you deserve. With increased costs for insurance, utilities, higher mortgage rates and higher maintenance costs, every dollar is crucial.

“Short-term thinking is the greatest enemy of good government.” Anthony Albanese

What we at PRS PROPERTIES CAN DO. We are always available to chat. We can give you referrals for professionals, such as contractors, and engineers, so that you can decide who you feel best with. We can supply you with rent and sale comparables in the area of your properties. It is important that you know the true value of your rental units, so that you can get them rented right away at market value, or at least as much as possible with rent control restrictions. We can look at potential purchases that you may be interested in to make the property more desirable, and maybe look at potential issues that an insurer might require you to repair.

If you should decide to sell your building, we can help you exchange into a larger or smaller properties. We can even help you move into something with less management responsibilities. We can also help with getting the paperwork together for a refinance if that is your desire. We can also recommend experienced licensed contractors who can perform any repairs or installations you may need prior to selling. We can also look at your building for other easy and inexpensive changes that might allow you to get a higher value. We can help you to get the maximum value for your property, should you decide to sell, or the maximum return if you are planning to keep your building.

We always have many investors who are looking for “as-is” properties and are willing to purchase with low rents, deferred maintenance or even with a problem tenant in place. We have put together numerous transactions over the years which involve properties that are not listed for sale. Many investors are currently in 1031 exchanges and need to identify a replacement property before their 45 day identification period runs out.

Should you decide to put your property on the market, we will put together an aggressive, targeted and professional campaign to get your property sold fast. We have been doing this for over 40 years, and we will use all the tools available to bring you the most dollars at closing. If you are thinking of selling or are just curious about the value of your property, don’t hesitate to give us a call.