From the Peace & Freedom Party Platform:
“End homelessness; abolish vagrancy laws; provide decent affordable housing for all...”
Prior to 2007, the boom in the real-estate lured many new investors to purchase apatrment buildings and rental homes, often with questionable adjustable rate mortages. When those mortgages re-set, and the speculator landlord goes into foreclosure, what happens to the renter living in the about-to be foreclosed house or apartment?
Since the banks don’t want to go into the property management business, tenants were getting evicted, even if they were law-abiding people who paid their rent on time.
This is a big problem in Los Angeles: during the first nine months of the year, 1,300 rental buildings in the city of Los Angeles went into foreclosure, affecting tenants in 3,700 units.
In L.A. several grassroots tenants-rights groups organized tenants affected by this and won a one year moratorium on unfair evictions, which was signed into law by Mayor Villarigosa in December 200
From L.A. Times Dec.. 2008:
Renters whose residences have gone into foreclosure cannot be evicted until the property is sold to a new owner under a city law signed Friday by Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa.
The one-year ordinance, spearheaded by Council President Eric Garcetti, will impact 300,000 apartment buildings and single-family homes.
"This will work to help residents stay in their homes and keep the communities in tact," Villaraigosa said at a City Hall news conference.
This is a good start, but it only covers Los Angeles, and it’s only for one year.
Renters throughout all need protection for the duration of the real-estate crisis, which experts expect may continue for several years.
If elected, Cindy Varela Henderson consult with tenants-rights groups, like Coalition L.A. http://www.coalitionla.org/ to write a state-wide eviction moratorium.
Don’t punish law-abiding renters for landlord speculation
Housing is a right.
VOTE CINDY VARELA HENDERSON,
PEACE & FREEDOM PARTY CANDIDATE
26TH STATE SENATE
TUESDAY, MARCH 24th
