Several landlords claim in sworn declarations they have lost thousands of dollars through delinquent rent payments and inflation because of Los Angeles County’s eviction moratorium and will continue to do so if an extension of the measure goes into effect as scheduled next month.
The extended eviction restrictions, approved by the Board of Supervisors in January, provides continued — although modified — protections for failure to pay rent. The Apartment Association of Greater Los Angeles and the Apartment Owners Association of California brought a lawsuit March 7 against Los Angeles County, asking that preliminary and permanent injunctions be issued preventing enforcement of the renewed eviction ban as unconstitutional.
The county’s original eviction moratorium was implemented in March 2020 and was extended several times. The statewide ban expired in September, but beginning April 1, landlords with property in Los Angeles County will no longer be able to evict tenants claiming they are impacted by the pandemic, nor may the property owners challenge a tenant’s self-certification of financial hardship, according to the apartment owners’ court papers.
On Monday, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge William F. Highberger scheduled an April 6 hearing on the two landlord groups’ preliminary injunction request.
“Quite simply, the renewed eviction ban does not advance, to any degree, any legitimate public purpose,” the apartment landlords state in their court papers.
Jennie Weinberger, a member of the Apartment Association of Greater Los Angeles, stated in her declaration submitted Monday that she owns three apartment buildings, and she says two of her tenants are collectively behind in their rent by $21,215 and that both have blamed the coronavirus for their inability to pay rent.
“While my monthly revenue from rent has declined significantly since the start of the pandemic, my expenses to maintain and operate this property have stayed consistent and have even risen in some service areas,” according to the 73-year-old Weinberger, whose husband is 74.
“We worked extremely hard to buy these properties because we do not have a pension and could not rely on Social Security,” Weinberger said. “This was the only way for us to have money to fall back on during retirement.”
However, with the new moratorium, tenants “continue to take advantage of not having to pay and we are the ones getting hurt,” according to Weinberger, who called herself and her husband “mom-and-pop landlords.”
In another declaration, Jenelle McAdams wrote that her 98-year-old grandmother is a member of the Apartment Association of Greater Los Angeles and that McAdams manages the two apartment buildings. Before Oct. 1, 2020, one tenant stopped paying rent and owes about $22,000, also citing the coronavirus as the reason for an inability to pay, according to McAdams. Maintenance and upkeep cost reached about $77,000 in 2021 and have risen commensurate with “inflation and the explosion in costs for materials and labor,” McAdams says.
“In my experience managing apartment buildings, it is virtually impossible to collect back rent from tenants once they are more than one month delinquent,” according to McAdams, who said the tenant at issue “has made my grandmother’s last two years miserable.”
Another declarant, Morgan Brown, said he owns two apartment buildings totaling 25 units and that four tenants who stopped paying rent in 2020 now collectively owe him nearly $300,000. For each month the tenants refuse to pay rent, rent arrears grow by more than $21,000, he says. Meanwhile, Brown pays about $85,000 annually in property taxes for the two buildings and, with maintenance and upkeep, his costs are estimated to be 40% of gross rents, or approximately $8,500 per month for the four units occupied by the delinquent tenants, he says.
“Eviction is the only effective means I have as a landlord to ensure that tenants will pay their rent obligations,” Brown says.
Under the extension approved by the Board of Supervisors in January, beginning April 1, the county will reinstate protections for renters who fail to pay their rent. But starting June 1, the protection for non-payment will be provided only to lower-income tenants — those who earn up to 80% of AMI, the area median income.
Some other tenant protections will also be lifted June 1, with many others being lifted at the end of the year. The eviction protection for non-payment by lower-income tenants will continue until June 2023.
Previous related story: Apartment owners challenge LA County renewed eviction ban
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Tim Scott says
“his costs are estimated to be 40% of gross rents, or approximately $8,500 per month for the four units”
So if they were paying then his profits, 60%, would be approximately $12,750 for the four units, a bit over $3,000 per unit.
“he owns two apartment buildings totaling 25 units”
Ar $3,000 per unit that is a monthly profit of…$75,000. The four units not paying cuts that down to ONLY $67,000 a month. One wonders how poor old Morgan Brown manages to get by.
Kevin Wilson says
Exactly what I was thinking Tim.
FWB says
Profit is determined after expenses.
What you’re referring to as profit is actually called gross income.
Knowing the difference is what’s allowed me to be self employed for 42 years.
Tim Scott says
42 years, eh?
The expenses were already noted. The guy says the expenses are costing him 40% of gross rents, $8,500 a month for the four units.
I usually try to be pretty tolerant with you Bob, but this comment you are just being plain dumb. Read twice, comment once.
Tim Scott says
Gosh, being a landlord isn’t just straight profits, it actually involves some financial risk…that hardly seems fair…
FWB says
There’s plenty of risk without the county telling renters they don’t need to pay their rent.
Tim Scott says
Note that the county didn’t do that in some out of the blue effort to screw landlords. In case you missed it, the human race just weathered a pandemic that screwed just about everyone one way or another. I have zero sympathy for “but as a landlord I should be exempt and protected from consequences of this pandemic.” The political environment has been landlord friendly to the detriment of literally everyone else for decades.
FWB says
Landlords and home owners should have the same benefit and not have to pay mortgages..
Tim Scott says
As I said, landlords and homeowners have been on the receiving end for decades. Where was your “everyone else should get benefits too” cry for justice then?
Kevin Wilson says
So landlord loses $21,000 each month the four tenants who refuse to pay rent. Did I read this correctly? I’ve been out of college for 37 years; and math was not my greatest subject, but this would be $5,250 a month rent. Could this be another problem?