The views and opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and don’t necessarily reflect The Press Democrat editorial board’s perspective. The opinion and news sections operate separately and independently of one another.

It’s time to protect the rights of landlords. In order to have rental properties, we need landlords. If homeownership becomes too restrictive, landlords can sell and invest their money elsewhere.

My concern relates specifically to long-term rentals of single-family homes in Petaluma and ultimately Sonoma County. I am not referring to multifamily units, mobile home parks, vacation rentals or corporate-owned properties.

California has always been at the forefront of protecting tenants’ rights. Assembly Bill 1482, which went into effect in 2020, further protects multiunit tenants with rent control and just cause eviction policies.

Extending just cause restrictions to single-family homes, as the Petaluma City Council will consider on Monday, would undercut AB 1482. The law was intended to strike a balance between renters and rental housing providers. Single-family homes were intentionally excluded to mitigate the impacts on smaller, family-owned rental businesses.

Here are some reasons why Petaluma City Council should protect landlords and tenants from the unanticipated results of passing a restrictive ordinance:

Since October 2017, states of emergencies, moratoriums and COVID restrictions have been in place, making it less desirable to own rental property. Most owners rely on their rentals for income or retirement.

In the past couple of years, many local landlords have opted to take advantage of high prices and sell. The vast majority of these homes were purchased by owner occupants, thereby reducing the rental property inventory. Further restrictions will result in more sales.

Just cause eviction makes no sense in the single-family market. Savvy landlords never want a good tenant to move. Turnovers cost money and lost rent. However, if a landlord has a tenant who is damaging the property or causing havoc in the neighborhood, their right to give notice should not be restricted.

Most single-family landlords own one property. They are not rich corporations. Corporate owners are subject to the same restrictions as multifamily units under AB 1482.

If landlords have to fear getting “stuck” with a bad tenant, they will likely be far more discerning in selecting applicants. Marginally qualified renters will have greater difficulty finding a home as the risk of accepting them is too high.

If a landlord has a bad tenant, and they are unable to give them notice to move, their last option is to sell the property, resulting in yet another rental leaving the already diminished rental pool.

After more than 30 years of managing single-family homes in Petaluma, I assure you we do not need this ordinance. If any new law goes into effect with unnecessary and restrictive tenant protections, this will ultimately damage the people it intends to protect.

Kerry Mahoney Davison own Mahoney Davison Property Management. She lives in Petaluma.

You can send letters to the editor to letters@pressdemocrat.com.

The views and opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and don’t necessarily reflect The Press Democrat editorial board’s perspective. The opinion and news sections operate separately and independently of one another.

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