L.A. sets 4% cap on rent hikes for certain units

The maximum annual rent increase for rent-stabilized apartments will now be 1% to 4%, depending on inflation.

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ELIZA ANALCO attends the Keep LA Housed Coalition rally last year that urged less harmful rent increases.

(ALLEN J. SCHABEN Los Angeles Times)

That's down from current caps of 3% to 8% and as much as 10% if the landlord pays for utilities.

“This sets the message: Do not build here. Do not invest in Los Angeles. Do not keep your units on the market,” said Councilmember John Lee, who voted against the new cap with Councilmember Bob Blumenfield.

In the months leading up to the vote, dozens of tenants and landlords pleaded their cases before the City Council’s Housing and Homelessness Committee.

Valerie Valentine, who bought a triplex in South Los Angeles two weeks ago, spoke of bills that were already accumulating. She feared that she wouldn't collect enough in rent to offset those expenses.

“It’s draconian,” she said in an interview. “Lowering the amount we can raise rent is a slap in the face. They are favoring one side of the aisle more than the other.”

On the other side, renters, who far outnumber landlords in the city, supported an even stronger 3% cap proposed by Raman.