Plaintiffs allege COVID-19-related eviction and rent increase ban violates owners' constitutional rights
Various social activism groups have called not only for the prohibition of evictions but also for the elimination of rents during the pandemic.
Photo:
ETIENNE LAURENT / EFE
The Greater Los Angeles Apartment Association (AAGLA), one of the largest organizations that brings together owners of rental buildings in southern California, sued this Thursday to the city Los Angeles claiming that ban on evictions and rent increases related to COVID-19 violates the constitutional rights of the owners.
The lawsuit filed in the Central District Court of California asks invalidate the eviction ban and rent freeze approved by the city council to help tenants deal with the economic problems stemming from the pandemic.
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"The eviction moratorium (…) does not require tenants to notify, much less submit documentation, of their inability to pay. While the eviction moratorium does not provide relief to landlords and requires them to continue to fulfill their contractual and legal obligations as landlords"They assure in the demand.
Earle Vaughan, chairman of the board of AAGLAhe told the news website MyNewsLA that the eviction ban "was not well thought out and will most likely expose the city to hundreds of millions of dollars in liability to property owners."
With orders to stay home and hundreds of job sources closing, the city passed an ordinance prohibiting landlords from evicting tenants for failing to pay if they had lost their job or wages or if they were financially affected during the pandemic.
In accordance with the regulations, tenants have one year after expiration of the state of emergency to refund the rent.
The complaint argue that established anti-eviction ordinances because of the pandemic they are allowing tenants who really have the ability to pay all or part of their rent to ignore their contractual obligations.
AAGLA also rejected the order of the city council of Los Angeles stop rent increases for certain buildings for one year, and the measure that allows tenants to sue their landlords if they violate the rules against eviction.
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