More Thomas Fire Fallout

What rights do tenants have who are being asked to leave an undamaged rental property after the Thomas Fire in California, presumably so the landlord can re-rent to charge more? What is to stop a landlord from evicting current renters so they can turn around and move in a FEMA voucher holder or anyone else at a substantially higher monthly rental rate? 

There should be at least a 6 month to 1 year moratorium on evictions and rent increases without cause following a natural disaster that leads to a housing shortage.

Rent has increased by $500 to $1500 in Ventura County since the Thomas Fire.

20 months ago a single family home could be rented from $1500 to $1700 on the low end, $1800 - $2100 median, and $2200 - $2800 on the high end for a 3 bedroom/2 bath house.

Those same properties are now renting from $2000 - $2400 on the low end, $2500-$2750 median and $2800 - $3500 on the high end! 

Is it just me or have FEMA vouchers created a feeding frenzy for greedy property owners looking for a government guarantee that isn't HUD? There is no question that property owners are taking advantage of the fact that 700 plus families in Ventura County are homeless.

The thing is, FEMA aid and insurance are available for people who lost their homes in the fire. What about those of us who didn't lose their homes to fire damage but are being evicted so landlords can rent properties at higher rates or to personal friends and family whose homes were lost? Who protects us? We're screwed without any help or insurance because we can't prove that is what landlords are doing and landlords aren't required to state reasons for evicting people.

 After living here for 24 months, with a $2000 monthly rent, we were given notice on January 31, 2018 that we need to be out in 60 days, by March 31, 2018. No explanation, nothing. When I asked, "Why?" the landlord said he's selling the property. There is no record of a sale. We doubt he even wants to sell given the fact he started a business on the (ranch) property just last year and invested quite a bit into seven greenhouses. 

We think he wants us out to repair damage on the house that we were not responsible for on the roof and the foundation due to a long standing plumbing problem, a broken pipe under the house that went undetected although we complained about water pressure and lack of hot water for months. Instead of sending a qualified plumber, he sent incompetent, cheap labor, a handyman who missed the problem altogether.  Of course, the landlord wouldn't want to tell us that. It’s also possible that he wants us out so he can move someone else in at higher rates.

We live in a small town where my husband was raised and where we have been raising our two kids, now attending local colleges. I came here in 8th grade and set down roots. We don’t want to move to a different city. We love it here. We've always been here. It's our town.

Every single day since we were notified that we have to move, we check every possible source for available 3 bedroom rentals in town for the 4 of us and our dog and there are none! When a rental does come up, it is either snatched up right away, doesn't allow pets, or is too small without a fenced yard for the dog. 

Not only that but some property managers take applications for more than a month even if the property is already available. There is an application fee of $35 -$45 per tenant, 18 years or older. Every one of us has to submit one for each property. That amounts to $140 to $180 a pop every time we apply for a rental! We can't come up with a first plus deposit for $5,000 to $6,000 and pay those application fees to property managers every time. If we apply for two properties it will cost us approximately $300 to $400. That's a huge chunk out of our budget with no guarantee of acceptance. Who keeps property managers honest? Seriously, how long does it take to make up their minds? How many applications does it take? It doesn't cost that much to run someone's credit. On top of that, every property we apply for results in a credit check which slowly chips away at our credit ratings. We can't win.

We just qualified for a $500,000 VA loan but the houses that were $450,000 just 6 months ago are now listing at $530,000+ and we don't have enough time to wait for escrow  to close even if we are lucky enough to find a house we like that we can  actually afford.

The stress and emotional strain do not compare to that of people who lost everything in the fire but we have to deal with the fallout and it’s nerve wracking! We have less than 20 days to be out and still no place to live!

What laws protect us? If there aren't any laws protecting us, how can we be treated fairly?

~Renter's Rant, Deb