San Francisco Mandates Seismic Retrofits for Soft Story Buildings

  In 2010, San Francisco instituted a program that would require rental housing owners to seismically retrofit certain soft story buildings.  Because the program is currently voluntary, the improvements are not being made. Therefore, legislation has been introduced to mandate retrofits. The proposed regulations would affect only wood-frame soft-story buildings built before 1978 that are at… Read More

Scrupulous Tenant Background Checks Save Time and Money and Headaches

I’ll be the first to admit that leasing property isn’t rocket science, but it is people science.  I consider myself part private investigator, part sociologist, and part psychologist when I am considering a tenant for one of my clients. I recently read a San Francisco Chronicle article about a landlord’s nightmare eviction.  You may read… Read More

Reduce Kitchen Stovetop Fire Risk

While I have not experienced an extreme emergency in the 10+ years I have been managing properties (knock on wood), the possibility and worry is constantly on my mind. Over the last couple weeks as I have began preparing an emergency preparedness plan for our office and each building we manage, as well as information… Read More

THE RISKS OF RENTING ILLEGAL APARTMENT UNITS

While I receive questions from my clients and potential clients about numerous issues each day, very frequently it seems like everyone has the same question.  Sometimes this is provoked by a news article or pending legislation; other times it seems like pure coincidence. The burning question the last couple weeks has been “what are the… Read More

Are You Getting The Most Income From Your Properties? An Overview of Rent Board Passthroughs

Though the San Francisco Rent Ordinance tends to favor tenants by suppressing rents, there are ways to increase a tenant’s rent legally through Rent Board petitions. Capital Improvement Passthrough Operating And Maintenance Expense Increase Special Circumstances Increase Based on Rents for Comparable Units Rent Increase Based on the Past Rent History of a Proposition I… Read More

Investor’s Survival Guide

Daily challenges are inevitable for residential investment property managers–from the inconvenient clogged plumbing, to destructive tenants. Savvy, long-term investors know that the occasional challenges of being a landlord are far outweighed by the benefit of their investment. Below is some advice on how to handle or avoid the most common pitfalls of being a landlord…. Read More

San Francisco Rent Board Publishes Annual Rent Increase Amounts

Effective March 1, 2012 through February 28, 2013, the allowable annual increase amount is 1.9%. In accordance with Rules and Regulations Section 1.12, this amount is based on 60% of the percentage increase in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for All Urban Consumers in the San Francisco-Oakland-San Jose region for the 12-month period ending October… Read More

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