Changes pending for Oregon rent cap

By PETER WONG
Oregon Capital Bureau

A Senate committee is poised to propose changes to Oregon’s 2019 cap on annual rent increases.

But the changes that the Senate Housing and Development Committee began considering this week — after it received hundreds of statements on March 27 in support and opposition to Senate Bill 611 — are unlikely to please advocates of the original bill or opponents who prefer no action at all.

Under the 2019 law, the first statewide rent cap in the nation, annual rent increases are limited to the change in the Consumer Price Index — as calculated by the Oregon Office of Economic Analysis — plus 7%. The cap does not apply to buildings less than 15 years old.

But tenant advocates pushed for changes after a spurt of inflation resulted in an annual cap of 14.6% for 2023 rent increases.

As introduced, Senate Bill 611 would cap annual increases at 8% or the change in the Consumer Price Index plus 3% — whichever is less — and only buildings less than three years old would be exempt.

Pending amendments before the committee, however, would set the cap at 10% or the change in the Consumer Price Index plus 5%, whichever is less. The exemption from the cap would remain for buildings less than 15 years old. The only other change is whether a landlord would have to pay just two months’ rent, instead of three months, for tenant moving expenses.

Pros and cons

Advocates of the legislation put forth the story of Jessica Israel, who discussed her family’s plight in a story published Feb. 9 in the Valley Times. She told it again at a March 20 briefing sponsored by the Community Alliance of Tenants, part of the Stable Homes for Oregon Families coalition of more than 30 organizations.

“The passage of this bill may happen too late to help my family,” Israel said. “But we are calling on lawmakers to support this bill to stabilize all rents in Oregon. It may not fix every issue, but it will keep more people in their homes.”

Her residence is in Cannery Row Apartments in Old Town Sherwood, which records show was purchased last fall by SR Watt Company, based in California, and property management assumed by Cushman and Wakefield. Israel said her family got a notice three months later, as set by state law, that monthly rent would be increased by 32%, or $560 per month, and could go up by as much as 50% per month in lieu of a lease.

But the committee also heard from individual landlords, who argued that such legislation makes it harder for them to provide rental housing, and Multifamily NW, which submitted a letter containing statistics to bolster its argument that any form of rent control does not achieve what its advocates seek.

The letter was submitted by its deputy executive director, Gary Fisher, who concluded:

“In summary, the facts show that rent control is at best a thin Band-Aid that will not ultimately benefit Oregonians. It is imperative that we refocus on the root causes of housing instability… Multifamily NW is eager to move beyond this well-intended but highly impractical proposal and continue to work with this committee to improve rental housing outcomes across the state.”

This is not the first encounter between tenant and landlord advocates this session.

Senate Bill 611 was one of two put forth by Stable Homes for Oregon Families, which also advocated legislation (Senate Bill 799) that would have reinstated a pandemic-era requirement for a 60-day eviction notice from landlords, based on nonpayment of rent, if tenants have filed official applications for rental assistance. It also proposed to extend the actual period for evictions from three to 10 days.

Landlords also opposed that bill, which the committee considered back on Jan. 30.

The Senate committee ended up increasing the permitted eviction period from three to 10 days and it was inserted into broader housing policy legislation (House Bill 2001) that was signed March 29 by Gov. Tina Kotek. The Stable Homes coalition supported it, and Multifamily NW, which represents owners and managers to 275,000 rental units statewide, ended up taking no position.