Tuesday, July 24th is a consequential day for property owners in both Oakland and Berkeley. With November marching closer, these two cities will be…
There have been spirited discussions on rent control throughout the Bay Area, but we can’t seem to recall a debate so cantankerous as the…
After a hyper-focus on San Francisco and Oakland, we expand our trek to other Bay Area locales that have unique housing issues. Santa Clara…
In between practicing law and going on the speaking circuit lately to talk about the ever-evolving rent control rules of San Francisco and Oakland, there’s…
Immigration law has become a combustible subject lately and while all politics are local, some are more local than others. The Bay Area has…
This author always enjoyed watching Parking Wars, A&E’s popular reality television series that follows traffic enforcement employees as they ticket, “boot,” tow and release…
With the wind against the backs of tenant advocates, rental housing providers are getting nervous about efforts to repeal the decades-old Costa Hawkins Rental…
Tenant advocates are in a celebratory mood after Proposition F sailed to victory in Tuesday’s special election. In an only-in-San-Francisco moment, 56 percent of the voters…
In the vast majority of cases of strained landlord-tenant relationships that cross our desk, a tenant’s alleged transgression is “curable,” meaning the tenant can…
Until recently, San Francisco was the only major Bay Area city with rent-control laws to allow landlords to pass on portions of property taxes…
Section 8 housing has been the subject of some controversy and conflict lately. With a good deal of misinformation floating around, widespread landlord bias…
When rental relationships sour, even the most studious investment property owners can be slapped with a lawsuit that may cost tens of thousands of…
Airbnb may have won many people’s choice awards, but it hasn’t gotten many points with its hometown. Now, the city seems to have tamed…
At Bornstein Law, we marvel at California’s scenery and are the first to recognize that all of us must be good stewards of the…
Immigration was a divisive topic in 2017, but California has been the capital of democratic resistance in the Trump era, making a concerted effort to…
We have always acknowledged the crucially important and difficult role of teachers, so Bornstein Law was encouraged to see that their toil in their…
As heavy consumers of Bay Area housing news, we came across this article chronicling the plight of Cindy Chau, a tenant who thought she found a…
Calvin Coolidge once said that “advertising is the life of trade.” For the rental property industry, we might also add that advertising is the…
“We print buildings” is the motto of Apis Cor, a Russian based company that has a unique mobile 3D building printer that is capable of…
With Facebook embroiled in controversy as of late, it’s gone from bad to worse. Now is the perfect time for landlords and property managers…
We’ve all seen and heard the inspirational home improvement commercials about doing and saving. It goes something like, “we’ve got this, look what we’ve…
Since its debut on 60 Minutes, we wanted to circle back to the “leaning tower” of San Francisco to see if any progress has…
Law Surrounding Accessory Dwelling Units, Aka ‘Granny Flats’ Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs), colloquially known as in-law units or granny flats, are gaining popularity throughout the…
Tenant Screening Becomes More Difficult As Concealing Checkered Pasts Become Easier Clearly, tenant screening is one of the most important aspects of your rental business,…
Finding a model tenant who pays rent on time, studiously cares for the rental unit, and is a good neighbor can be a challenging…
In a free society, everyone has the prerogative to do what they enjoy, so long as it is legal and does not interfere with…
Airbnb’s steely legal team is no stranger to litigation, whether defending an array of lawsuits around the globe or bringing their own fight to…
When resident managers feel aggrieved, the current climate is rife for costly litigation. These onsite managers are becoming more sophisticated in maneuvering the legal…
The legal saga of Airbnb and other short-term rental platforms has been anything but transitory, but it seems that things are settling down and…
Our conclusion? Rather than penalizing landlords, we should come together to focus on solutions. Of course, that’s easier said than done. Our area is…
In an earlier post, we stressed the importance of property owners and managers to take care in screening prospective tenants in a complete, deliberate…
Under ordinary circumstances, tenants do not have the right to terminate their lease early because of a new job or job relocation. One exception…
In our last post, we urged landlords and property managers to take immediate steps to correct hoarding behavior when it is discovered. The tenant…