Notes about Current Eviction Climate from San Diego Eviction Attorney Rick Alter

The following notes were taken from a 45 minute conference call interview with our San Diego eviction attorney Richard Alter.

EVICTIONS:

Courts are closed and set to open the end of August or end of September. Timing is still uncertain. Currently courts are very limited and it will likely be a long time before they are able to handle a standard case load.

UPDATE: Judicial Council votes to resume unlawful detainers Sept. 1

Right now - only major health and safety evictions are getting the courts attention. All non-emergency evictions are restricted and ignored for the most part. There is no "line" they are simply dismissed until further notice. This includes evictions do to rent non-payment.

When the courts do open up they will be bogged down for a few months with a backlog of cases to manage.

It is not recommended to serve a 3 day pay rent or quit. This may be misconstrued as harassment. Rather, with delinquent tenants it is recommended to send a letter that sympathizes with their situation and explains that landlord is willing to work with tenant to set up a payment plan for past due rent. Landlord may want to explain the past due rent can not be forgiven and include the past due balance as a reminder. Paying some rent is better than paying no rent.

Cash For Keys on Value-Add

Make sure on cash for keys deals you have it in writing to protect the landlord. Have an attorney draft it. 1542 form waiver is recommended. City of San Diego. It is not required to get a permit to kick out a tenant to upgrade the unit. They reference a 30 day renovation as merit to evict a tenant per Law 1482. (~6.9% increase allowed....previously 7.2%) It is a good idea to pull a water heater permit to meet the requirement in other cities as a CYA.

Rent Increases We are still in a state of emergency. Loose stipulation of price gouging. Probably not a good idea to send rent increase notices out until the covid climate gets better. It could cause more problems than it is worth.

For further information, please contact:

Kathy Draney

Paralegal to Richard C. Alter

401 West A Street, Suite 1701

San Diego, CA 92101

(619)233-8428

NONE OF THE ABOVE SHOULD BE INTERPRETED AS LEGAL ADVICE. YOU ARE ADVISED TO CONSULT WITH YOUR OWN ATTORNEY FOR COUNCIL ON THESE ISSUES. Gonzalez and Barbara Group of South Coast Commercial, Inc. are not qualified to provide, and have not been contracted to provide, legal, financial, or tax advice, and that any such advice regarding any investment by the recipients must be obtained from the recipients’ attorney, accountant, or tax professional.