Anchorage lawmakers are advancing an ordinance that could significantly raise the costs of being a landlord in the city. The measure would require rental property owners to provide tenants financial relocation assistance equal to twice the tenant’s monthly rent, plus any deposits and prepaid rent, if a building is deemed unsafe and tenants are ordered to vacate.
Under the amendment to Anchorage Municipal Code 15.05.060, landlords would have just seven days after a notice to vacate to make these payments. If they fail to do so, the city could use a new Relocation Assistance Fund to cover the cost and then pursue repayment from the owner. Daily penalties would accrue for landlords who do not reimburse the municipality within 60 days.
The ordinance also amends Title 8 to make noncompliance with notices to vacate or enforcement orders a misdemeanor offense. Property owners who fall behind on repairs, or cannot afford relocation payments, could find themselves facing both steep financial penalties and criminal charges.
The proposal is similar to what is on the books in several Southern California cities, such as Los Angeles, Santa Monica, and Long Beach.
The ordinance is presented as a response to Anchorage’s aging multifamily housing stock and a punishment for property owners who defer repairs on their properties. The measure adds another layer of cost and legal exposure for landlords who are already struggling with high maintenance bills, property taxes, and limited rental income.
By forcing landlords to foot the bill when tenants are displaced, the city is effectively raising the cost of owning and maintaining rental housing. Opponents warn that some property owners may simply sell or leave the rental market altogether, further tightening Anchorage’s already limited housing supply.
The Assembly will take up the measure during its Tuesday meeting. If passed, it would mark one of the strongest examples yet of local government using criminal penalties and financial mandates to shape the rental housing market at the expense of property owners.
The item is 10.G.2 on the Assembly agenda for the meeting that begins at 5 pm on the ground floor Assembly Chambers of the Loussac Library in Anchorage.
Awesome lets give tenants a cash incentive to flood and destroy their rental.
You’re absolutely right.
That’s it. We are selling our rental. Enough of this MOA crap.
And I hope other owners do as well.
“……We are selling our rental……..”
Good luck finding a buyer.
Im sure theres a ring of contractors and housing related people in the know – at least for the land. More in the know than we know.
Ha-Ha!!! … This measure will only increase rental rates for renters! I once heard a popular phrase somewhere throughout my travels: “We cheat the other guys and pass the saving onto you” … all of which, appropriately – accurately applies here.
“….. We cheat the other guys and pass the saving onto you……..”
And Mike ran for office after selling out, too. Seems like the perfect fit for a guy who came up with that slogan.
What determines ‘unsafe’ or ‘deferred maintenance”? Seems like a can of worms that will worsen further the housing needs. A bit short sighted.
LMAO Anchorage Politicians just keep getting dumber
Seriously!!! It’s mind blowing how stupid people can be and the people that vote for them are even more stupid. SMH
Forward Soviet!
Landlords have expected an unrealistic rate of return for years, which is a major reason we have inadequate housing stock.
Ignorant answer – greedy landlords increase rental stock so they can make even more money… This ordinance will merely guarantee rents double or more and rental stock gets reduced, adding to the profits of the homeless industrial complex and increasing taxes to pay for the expanding “crisis”. Maybe when they’ve taken all your money and shut down the entire city economy will the corrupt members of the Anchorage assembly leave. You voted for these demons, own it.
Good Lord! Apparently there is nothing that the left hates more, than ordinary citizens working hard to get ahead- as most property owners are! Amazing how willing they are to criminalize ordinary folks, while ignoring the actual drugs, crime, and madness on the streets of Anchorage! Assembly: is there NO sense of decency left in you? DO your real jobs: improve Anchorage!
I am sure this will only apply to landlords that are not friends of the Assembly members. (Mark Begich, I am looking in your direction…)
This is the Assembly’s first step in changing Anchorage landlord tenant law to what has plagued and severely damaged Portland, Oregon rental property owners for a few years *and* has led to a massive reduction in available rental properties there. Rather than continue as small-scale rental owners, some friends there sold and are selling and then purchasing other rental properties (using 1031 Exchanges) in better locations that are fairer to the rental property owner.
Mark my words! The Assembly plans to change existing landlord tenant law into one that severely favors the tenant over the property owner. ‘https://www.portland.gov/phb/rental-services/renter-relocation-assistance
This new Assembly proposal settles it for me. I am in the process of closing on a new residence later this week. I planned to rent/lease my current residence, but will now convert it to a BNB instead.
Doesn’t do you much good to go with a BNB. The Assembly also started regulating that too. They now require you to get a permit to run a BNB, get an annual inspection (at your cost), meet the inspector’s repair demands, and you are NOT allowed to rent to your tenants in the event that you have not met the demands. Say your inspector doesn’t show up… you have to cancel your BNB guests or face stiff penalties.
“…….then purchasing other rental properties (using 1031 Exchanges) in better locations that are fairer to the rental property owner………”
That fabled land doesn’t exist, because the troll under the troll under the other end of that bridge are the tenants. This culture is manufacturing Tenets from Hell. I got out of rental housing 30 years ago, and never looked back.
This is probably a ploy to steal properties so they can allow certain individuals to acquire them for nothing, then pay zero property taxes on the properties, so they can further enrich themselves. Look up CONDITIONAL APPROVAL DETERIORATED PROPERTIES (AMC 12.35) which is the muni code which is being used to allow certain businesses to avoid property taxes. Meanwhile, the property owners trying to live here are being levied unreasonable property taxes to make up for the HUGE inventory of exempt properties in this town. Go on the MOA Appraisal website and your can see the hundreds of millions of value properties that are exempt due to the MUNI acquiring them or transferring them to “non-profits” or exempting the properties under the above AMC.
And the Assembly at war with small business owners who provide housing. Their Juneau reps wonder why housing is such a pain.
This here is one reason why.
I’m a landlord, and this will force me to sell the property. I’ll be forced to relocate my investment out of the city too.
I am an Anchorage landlord and I don’t see this as a bad thing in theory but we all know that historically, housing policy aimed at helping renters typically does the opposite.
It takes a long time for a property to get to the point that its “unsafe” (whatever that even means). I’ve been in quite a few squalid properties in this town that were downright appalling and they stay 100% occupied because the people that live there have no other choice due to criminal records, bad credit, evictions or all three. Because of this, the rents being charged are on par with a much nicer apt in a better part of town and better amenities.
The owner has no incentive to meaningfully invest in the property because they’re already getting market rate and wouldn’t be able to charge any more in rent for dropping $100k into the building. Usually these buildings are so bad off that the only thing you can do with them is bulldoze and build new.
This appears to be targeting specific landlords…remember that building last winter that was in the news for not having a working boiler for months on end? I wouldn’t foresee this being used to “target” mom & pop landlords that own a duplex for 4plex. The caveat would be in an earthquake situation. Cashflow on smaller multifamily properties is not very much, especially if you’ve purchased relatively recently. If you’re getting $1,500/mo per unit and have significant damage from a quake, suddenly you’d have to come out of pocket $12,000 to pay people to leave…makes it hard to pencil the risk.
I wouldn’t expect this law to have the outcome the authors are ostensibly seeking of getting landlords to keep their properties in better shape (although that would be nice). What you’d end up having is a bunch of people that were living in said building because they couldn’t get approved to live anywhere else, essentially evicted AND more units taken out of the market. The only places they’d be able to get into would be of the same quality and less units on the market will drive prices even higher.
Thankfully, we’ll have 10,000 more homes in 9 years
You need to be on your Anchorage community council if you aren’t already.
You are wasting your time putting comments on Must Read Alaska sharing your opinion and its a very good opinion but it needs to be coming from council officers.
The problem with Must Read Alaska readers who lean Right or Conservative is they complain how unfair the Left is to them but they are waiting for Trump Alaska Governor to do the work they need to do on their Community Councils. Where do you think the Assembly talked this idea out first? they first talked it out with the community council officers.
Thanks Tina. Im active on the CC but we take a break in the summer and resume meetings in September 🇺🇸
Congratulations on your divorce from Mr. Reality.
.
Let’s celebrate by remembering every Wonderful Thing community councils have accomplished on behalf of the average working stiff in, say, the last twenty years.
.
Real fun will be comparing every Wonderful Thing with what’s actually happened to average working stiffs, their neighborhoods, and, yes, their communities.
OK. Check this out.
So, I currently rent out 3 br 2 ba house for $2,500. Small margin, and tenants like the price. Bought years ago with low interest and low cost, so it pencils out.
That SAME house will sell for $350K now. So if I sell, the next owners will buy it at market value and a high interest rate and live there at a much higher mortgage payment… which is not feasible for many.
Unless they choose buy it as as investment to rent it. If so, these new owners will have to charge $3,500 or more to keep that same margin.
The language allows for tenants who do not pay for months and get evicted to have their expenses paid. That’s just wrong. Remove that part of it.
If the intent is to manage dilapidated properties, then simply use the current laws the MOA has for these properties which include a registration. This is not managed well currently. If the other intent is to clean up these terrible properties that are currently owned, then do inspections and create administrative fix-it orders.
If not, it appears to us good property owners the intent is to be broad enough to go after us. Again, that’s wrong.
This is a great way to reduce housing in MOA. And here, I thought we had a housing crisis!
Time to rid the community of the plethora of slum lords.
On the other hand, a lot of my customers are telling me about landlord-tenant interactions that seem to be clearly illegal, and even abusive. The last time we lived in an Anchorage apartment, my wife was awakened by men the in living room, replacing the furnace, without any advance notice. We did not even see a need to replace the furnace, as it was working fine. That may have avoided a deferred-maintenance eviction, but it was illegal and frightening.
If this is an attempt to get homeowners to make repairs on their properties, then this is a misguided downstream approach. We need a much more upstream approach WAY before people are at risk of losing their housing. This is not the solution. We need more level-headed republicans in the assembly.
There it is, boys and girls: if you’re a rental owner, sell it now. The Anchorage Assembly plans to turn the local rental market into San Francisco, Portland, Seattle or any other leftist hell hole. While you’re at it, why not implement rent control like New York and REALLY screw things up. The assembly never learns. And the Free Sh*t Army never stops asking for more free stuff. It’s not compassionate if you’re giving away someone else’s money.
In a way it’ll force Property owners be responsible for keeping up with property maintenance. The yearly required maintenance costs for remodels and repairs to avoid letting property falling into disarray. Its the owner’s responsibility. I feel like there are too many property owners who do the minimal while letting smaller maintenance work turn into a bigger and more expensive repair job until the property looks like a neighborhood eyesore..
This will keep owners from stacking up real estate just for collecting rent while they neglect its maintenance
So, it’s a good thing? Because you “feel” like property owners are not living up to your high standards? Maybe instead of looking at how much good this would do for you personally, you could examine how much damage it will do to everyone around you.
Tina is a renter. Clearly.
This city makes some of the most moronic decisions! As if lanords don’t have enough problems with meth use in homes & all kinds of other problems.
A smart landlord tells everyone to move out and once the property is vacant demolishes the building. No building equals no improved property tax. Have a nice day City Council.
Well there are some pretty nasty slumlords in town.
And if their slummy property gets so bad that the Fire Marshals condemns it, I say fine them.
It’s not just about the condition of the slum housing, it’s also about the drugs & crime that are centered around those properties, we all suffer for the rat traps these guys run
The Chelsea Hotel for instance – the Econo Lodge – the Black Angus hotel, there are rental buildings w/ the same exact issues.
This will not affect a normal landlord that is doing the right thing (providing a safe, heated property w/ working plumbing.
It was never something I considered as I became an Anchorage Resident. I wasn’t thinking it would be like Southern California, Portland or Seattle. I thought we were independent of all that. Good ideas from those areas???? no !!!! This is called the “attorneys full employment act”. No definition of “maintenance” and when one judge determines on thing, the attorneys will do a “work around” which means the legal system will now be in charge ….. not the landlords who still take on all of the risk!!!! If this passes, get out of the rental business while you still can, I did !!!!!
This another really dumb idea in a long list of ideas from our muni meatheads.
I couldn’t think of a better way to destroy the rental market in this town. And if you destroy the rental market, housing for everyone gets more expensive. The same Assembly that has acted the last decade like they believe homelessness is due to the lack of availability of housing is doing its level best to ensure there is a housing shortage. Congratulations. You guys must be very proud. Cheers –
Anchorage is already a leftist run hellhole on par with Potland and See-ya-ttle. Good people, leave while you can! While your property is still worth something and you can leave without having to pay a fine for leaving. That is the only way you will get the muni’s attention. Or better yet, try showing up to vote.
What a shame that the state of Alaska failed to keep the republic by having no one entity to review for constitutionality the sometimes unlawful schmoo groups do creatively. Such review would stunt the imaginations of the left party I believe.
Isn’t Constant a realtor?
Something smarmy is going on here…
Supreme Court issue
I wonder which Assembly member sits on the board of the Cook Inlet Housing Authority looking for distressed properties around town to build on? And/or getting into the lucrative Equity Lending housing market?
You think rentals are expensive now? I give this a few months & there will be less rentals available. It would be a horrible business decision to rent property in Anchorage – it is an unfriendly place for businesses
Leave it to the Anchorage Assembly to implement California style laws in Alaska! Anchorage better wake up before their Assembly turns Anchorage into a California ghetto!
So welcome to Los Anchorage.
Soon, all of your hard work and minute wealth will be confiscated by the few to serve the undeserved. Wonderful hole we are in these days