San Francisco Rent Control Cheat Sheet. All the moving parts simplified.

Well another week and another lesson. Yesterday I was lucky enough to spend some time with Mr. Daniel Bornstien and it was worth it. There are so many intricacies when dealing with rentals in San Francisco. Growing up here in the city my father always had a nice rent controlled home located in the mission. Its was a wonderful flat and given the type of father I had it was  perfect fit for his lifestyle of writing about this wonderful city of ours.

Living on a writers budget is no easy task here in San Francisco. Even when he had mild success there was only so far that would take him. Thankfully he had his flat. A sanctuary of a household protecting him from the storms of rising rents and cost of living. My sister, brothers and I would often be be told "we're on a budget gang" and as young avengers we found excitement in making something out of nothing. One things for sure we always made it happen and we spent many evenings in a home filled with bellowing laughter working on our musical talents, cooking crab and reading in the study.

All jokes aside it was not easy and when he passed away one of the first calls I had was from the attorney representing the property owner requesting that his belongings be removed. I had no intention of taking over the lease in any way at any time. Without him there the luster was gone. It wasn't the nicest place so I had no problem seeing it go and packing up his belongings. I remember the curious many walking by interested in the new vacancy. Hey its San Francisco and we all need a place to live.

When I saw the listing on craigslist I was amazed and even more amazed that it rented out so quickly. This went from a flat that cost my father a whole $600 a month (including parking and utilities) that was now on the market for over $3K with a line of applicants.

There a many listings out there with tenants residing and many of those tenants have been here since the early 70's. Landlord tenant code is not an easy subject to tackle. Most people dance around it and don't really know what the real rules are. People casually mention things like OMI and Ellis Act. Tenant Buyout and Just Cause eviction. "Oh I'll just move in Owner occupied and we are good right?" Do you know what it takes and how long that process can take? What I've learned is there are a lot of moving parts and its important that your agent understands how to address these issues appropriately.

My dad had a few offers to leave but never took any of them. The building passed from owner to owner over the years. He didn't mind the offers and often thanked them appropriately with a "Thank you for the offer but I'm staying". Personally I think it was all he could afford and his goal was to make the best of it. When on tour I drive by his place often and always take a look to see if I can see some sign of life in the ol place. The mission has changed a lot since then but the theme remains the same to me at least.

Here are a few sheets that can help you understand how to operate in the space. If you need any help I'm happy to help in any way that I can. As my pops would say "On ward and upward!"