Professional Property Management Association of San Francisco (PPMA)

San Francisco Tenants Union organizers Becca Gourevitch and Andrew Szeto said the year after longtime tenant activist Ted Gullicksen's death was challenging. They are working to carry on his legacy throughout the organization's transition into new leadership. Click here to read the full story...

Former Board of Supervisors president Aaron Peskin has an appealing political cry for the District 3 residents he wants to represent again: Let’s expand rent control to apartment buildings constructed after 1979.  Click here to read the full story...

Assemblywoman Patty López (D-San Fernando) announced Brown signed her bill, AB 1448, which will allow line drying for people once restricted by their property management organizations... Click here to read the full story

The rental market here was already under siege when city officials began an ambitious earthquake retrofitting project whose costs will largely be passed on to renters. Fueled by the city's tech boom, rents have soared, with average one-bedroom units going for $3,500 a month. Low-income tenants are being evicted as a large number of apartments are being taken off the long-term rental market to be turned into condos or leased to users of Airbnb... Click Here to Read the Full Story

San Francisco’s latest attempt to make landlords pay relocation costs for tenants they evict when the property owners go out of the rental business has hit another judicial roadblock. The ordinance, scaled down from a previous measure, would require landlords to pay displaced tenants the difference between... Click here to read the full story

Airbnb operations are the focus of multiple legislative efforts. Board of Supervisors President David Chiu has introduced legislation that would legalize Airbnb hosting. Under the proposed law, hosts must reside in San Francisco, register with the city and cap rentals at three months a year, among other provisions.   http://www.sfbg.com/politics/2014/04/15/chiu-introduces-legislation-airbnb-and-short-term-housing-rentals An online petition calling on San Francisco to   overhaul laws that allow landlords to evict tenants for hosting on Airbnb has amassed more than 26,000 signatures and is backed by Airbnb.  http://www.sfgate.com/realestate/article/Petition-to-alter-S-F-laws-for-Airbnb-rentals-5414140.php Most recently, former San Francisco Planning Commissioner Doug Engmann, housing advocate Calvin Welch, and public relations executive Dale Carlson, have reportedly prepared a ballot measure to limit short-term rentals. More information onf this proposal is ava...

San Francisco City Attorney Dennis Herrera sued five property owners for allegedly evicting long-term tenants so they could rent apartments to tourists through Airbnb Inc. and other online home rental services.   Read what Bloomberg Business Week says about the lawsuit

Image Credit:  www.serviceanimalregistry.com The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) is actively pursuing disability discrimination claims against owners and operators of apartment complexes. As the result of a recent settlement, the DOJ will collect nearly $200,000 to resolve a lawsuit claiming that the owners and operators of a large apartment complex discriminated against persons with disabilities who used assistance animals. According to the lawsuit, the apartment complex violated the law by: limiting individuals with assistance animals to a certain portion of the apartment complex; subjecting those individuals to pet fees; requiring assistance animals to be licensed or certified; and, barring uncertified companion animals. If a tenant or prospective tenant asks about housing a companion animal, make sure that you understand the laws protecting that individual and the animal. If you are unsure, get advice. As one apartment complex manager learned, mistakes can be ve...

***PRESS RELEASE*** Treasurer José Cisneros Reminds Landlords with Non-Resident Parking to Register for Parking Tax Simplification and Amnesty by June 30 Deadline Tax Amnesty to Relieve Penalties, Interest and Back Taxes Ends June 30 San Francisco – Landlords and property managers that rent parking to non-residents (individuals that do not live in the building) have until June 30 to apply for a parking tax amnesty, Treasurer José Cisneros announced today.    “The Parking Tax Amnesty is an opportunity to come into compliance with the City’s parking tax and regulatory process,” said Treasurer Cisneros.  “After June 30, those providing parking may face back taxes, penalties, and interest.”  “I proposed this parking tax simplification legislation because many small property owners were renting out parking spots to non-residents and had no idea that they were required to pay parking tax,” said Supervisor Scott Wiener, who authored the legislation....

Deadline to Install Carbon Monoxide Detectors is January 1, 2013 California’s Carbon Monoxide Poisoning Prevention Act of 2010 requires that all residential property be equipped with a carbon monoxide alarm when the property has a “fossil fuel” burning heater or appliance, fireplace, or an attached garage. The law provides that all single-family detached homes (owner or tenant occupied) must be equipped with an alarm on or before July 1, 2011. All other residential units must be equipped with an alarm on or before January 1, 2013. A carbon monoxide alarm may be battery powered, a plug-in device with battery backup, or hard-wired into the dwelling unit with a battery backup. “Fossil fuel” is defined as coal, kerosene, oil, wood, fuel gases, and other petroleum or hydrocarbon products, which emit carbon monoxide as a byproduct of combustion. Carbon monoxide alarms shall be listed as complying with Underwriters Laboratories (UL) 2034 and shall be installed and maintained in accor...