California’s cornerstone rental housing protection law, the Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act, is in jeopardy as a bill proposing to broaden local rent control measures moves towards a full Senate vote. The California Apartment Association (CAA) has called the bill “anti-housing” and warned that it could deter the development of new rental units by allowing local governments to enforce stricter rent controls on newer properties.
SB 466 would remove Costa-Hawkins’ ban on local rent controls for housing built after 1995 and establish a rolling date – originally set at 15 years but subsequently agreed to be longer – while also exempting single family rentals and condominiums from expanded local rent controls.
Despite these modifications, CAA remains opposed to SB 466 due its potential disruption of decades old certainty around post 1995 properties being exempt from local rent control which could chill new development.
