When owners of California mobile home parks chose to convert to condominiums, there are winners and losers.
The winners, besides park owners who can see their property values more than double, are those renters who have the means and inclination to buy their sites. In some cases, a conversion may represent their best chance of becoming home owners in high-priced California.
By and large, low-income renters neither win nor lose because of state laws that allow them to continue renting at rates established by the state.
The biggest losers are those who fall somewhere between these two groups. They cannot afford to buy, but they don't qualify for low-income protections. In many cases, these individuals end up seeing their rents soar and have to move out, walking away from what investment they made in their not-so-mobile homes.
Legislation now on the governor's desk would provide a safety net for these vulnerable Californians, most of whom are seniors on fixed incomes.
AB 1542 by Assemblywoman Noreen Evans, D-Santa Rosa, would permit local rent control laws to stay in effect if a mobile home park is converted to condominium-style ownership. Under current law, parks are exempt from locals laws -- such as those in Santa Rosa and unincorporated Sonoma County -- as soon as conversions begin.
The Evans bill strikes a meaningful and fair compromise in this debate. It doesn't prevent condo conversions for occurring. Those who wish to buy will still be able to do so. It doesn't call for an expansion of local government authority. It does, however, ensure that some tenants don't end up falling through the cracks -- and end up being forced out.
Mobile home parks provide a significant portion of California's existing affordable housing stock. But as many as 40 mobile home parks -- including two in Santa Rosa and one in Sonoma County -- are currently targeted for conversion.
The state can't afford to wait. The governor needs to give AB 1542 his signature. |