Rent moratorium is considered

Tenants have it tough these days. But so do landlords. A City Council committee voted 3-1 to take the namby-pamby approach by supporting a four-month prohibition on rent increases. The proposed moratorium heads to the full Council on Friday. From the LAT:

[Councilman Richard] Alarcon said landlords should not impose new costs on their tenants in the middle of a recession. "Do I want to allow a group to increase its income when the people that they are providing apartments to are losing income? I have to say, I can't be a party to that," Alarcon told the audience. "I cannot align myself with allowing people to benefit when tens of thousands are struggling in Los Angeles."

The city of L.A. has a rent stabilization law that would allow rents to go up 3 percent as of July 1. That's $30 on a $1,000-a-month unit - for some folks a noticeable bump. On the other hand, L.A. County rents have been falling for the last couple of years - after peaking at $1,780 a month in the second quarter of 2008, they dropped to $1,614 by the fourth quarter of last year, and they're projected to keep dropping through the end of 2012. With vacancy rates edging higher in many parts of L.A. (city and county) landlords have been cutting rents and offering incentives. None of which might elicit much sympathy, except that in the apartment rental business it's always a zero sum game. The less that a building owner receives in rent, the less he's likely to shell out for repairs and maintenance. Sooner or later, the tenant ends up paying the bill anyway.