A recent study notes San Francisco/San Jose metropolitan area as having the lowest eviction rates nationwide. Adam Almeida, President and CEO of TenantScreeningUSA.com notes: “Anytime evictions make headlines landlords and property managers should be reminded to make sure their tenant screening policies are current with existing law and understand that working with a well-qualified third-party tenant screening company continues to be a best practice.”
San Francisco/San Jose sit atop of a recent study investigating eviction rates as the lowest nationally, highlighting evictions in national news. Adam Almeida, President and CEO of TenantScreeningUSA.com states: “Whenever evictions make the news landlords and property managers, knowing that eviction checks are a critical part of the tenant vetting process, should review current policies with a third-party tenant screening agency to ensure compliance with law.”
While evictions are down in San Francisco/San Jose this had not always been the case. Prior to a recent revision to existing law, Eviction Protection 2.0, evictions ran rampant.
From the San Francisco Examiner (SFExaminer.com; Nov. 05, 17):
Between October 2013 and September 2015, there were 4,304 evictions filed with the Rent Board, 2,200 of which were nuisance- or roommate-related. After Eviction Protections 2.0 passed, total evictions have dropped to 4,102 filed evictions between October 2015 and September 2017. (1)
In reaction to the climb in evictions revisions were made to existing law.
Again, from the San Francisco Examiner (SFExaminer.com; Nov. 05, 17):
What has happened, say tenant advocates, is a handy suite of protections passed in 2015 are kicking in. Eviction Protections 2.0, the wonky rewrite of San Francisco’s rent-control law, is working.
“Stronger rent projections led to an immediate drop in these kinds of evictions,” said Gen Fujioka, of the Chinatown Community Development Center, a nonprofit housing group.
So-called “nuisance” evictions — attributed to actionable offenses hanging laundry outside the window or leaving shoes in the hallway — and evictions for breach of lease when bringing in new roommates are measurably down from two years ago. (2)
Almeida notes: “Evictions have been a challenge in San Francisco and San Jose for several years due, in part, to some landlords wanting to gain higher paying tenants and utilizing potentially extralegal means.”
With revisions in place evictions decreased, as details from a recent study have shown.
From SF.Curbed.com (Oct. 27, 17):
Rental site ApartmentList released a study Thursday breaking down eviction data in major metros across the U.S. and came up with some good, albeit startling, news for the Bay Area: San Jose and San Francisco had the lowest and second-lowest eviction rates nationwide, respectively. (3)
Almeida states: “Evictions will remain an important factor in vetting new tenant applications. Revisions in law in San Francisco and San Jose metropolitan areas led to a decrease in overall evictions. Subsequently, landlords and property managers should take note that new laws and revision to existing law will continue to affect tenant screening. A best practice remains to work with a well-qualified tenant screening agency in order to stay current with existing law.”
TenantScreeningUSA.com is a third-party background screening company that provides tenant checks to landlords and property managers for all sizes and types of rental complexes, including self-storage. From the single-unit to the large community, TenantScreeningUSA.com has the ability to customize a tenant screening package specific to a managers unique requirements.
Notes:
(1) sfexaminer.com/tenants-find-stability-eviction-protections-2-0/
(2) ibid
(3) sf.curbed.com/2017/10/27/16557562/san-francisco-san-jose-owest-eviction-rate-study
