Housing Is A Human Right Implores CAA to Urge Wildfire Rent Freezes

On the heels of widespread reports of rent gouging in Southern California following its recent apocalyptic wildfires, AHF’s Housing Is A Human Right (HHR) is asking the California Apartment Association (CAA), the state’s main landlord lobbying organization, to urge its CAA members to voluntarily enact rent freezes on their rental properties during the calamity.

"Many people in LA County have lost everything - their homes, belongings and loved ones due to this disastrous fire," said Susie Shannon, Policy Director for Housing is a Human Right. "Yet, while huge swaths of Los Angeles County continue to burn, landlords, represented by the California Apartment Association, have wasted no time in rent gouging and taking advantage of those displaced by the fires. We ask CAA to urge their members to voluntarily freeze rents and allow victims of the fire to find stable housing."

A week after the fires—and as the region remains on heightened alert due to continuing threat of new and/or growing wildfires—widespread news reports of California landlords taking advantage of residents displaced due to the fire disaster are appearing, including in the Los Angeles Times, Newsweek, the news website LAist, and the BBC.

The Los Angeles Times wrote about steep rent increases across the region despite the fact that, “State price gouging rules took effect Jan. 7 once Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency and are supposed to rein in rental costs.”

The BBC noted: “…California Attorney General Rob Bonta also said he has seen landlords raising prices illegally. ‘You cannot do it. It is a crime punishable by up to a year in jail and fines,’ he said. ‘This is California law [and] it's in place to protect those suffering from a tragedy’.”

“Last year, the California Apartment Association spent over $170 million to defeat rent control in the state,” added Shannon. “If the organization cared about tenants, they would immediately call for an emergency wildfire rent freeze.”

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