The Santa Barbara County rental ordinance, as amended in July 2023, is inadvertently impacting both renters and homeowners negatively.
While the ordinance was crafted with good intentions, it requires revision to exclude homeowners with a “homeowners exemption.” The current ordinance is inadvertently reducing the availability of affordable rental housing.
The amendments approved in 2023 have led homeowners to decrease the number of units they rent, including rooms, auxiliary dwelling units and junior ADUs.
Under the ordinance, homeowners who rent more than two rooms or units while residing in their home, or more than one room or unit while absent due to various personal circumstances, become subject to its provisions.
Many homeowners feel compelled to cease renting rather than comply with the new regulations.
Santa Barbara County is home to diverse living arrangements that should be encouraged to support low- and moderate-income renters and landlords.
If homeowners fear losing control of their property due to the ordinance, they are unlikely to rent.
The ordinance aimed to prevent “renovictions” in large apartment complexes, not to impose additional regulations on homeowners.
However, it seems the ordinance’s most significant impact is on homeowners, many of whom are middle class.
Longtime homeowners who have rented successfully for years are now facing the prospect of selling to corporate landlords, withdrawing units from the market, or engaging in costly and stressful litigation — expenses they cannot bear.
The ordinance could force homeowners to sell their homes, often cherished for decades, if they cannot rent under acceptable terms.
Rentals within homes — such as studios, rooms, cottages and ADUs — represent some of the most affordable housing options in the county.
County policy should encourage the development of ADUs as an effective means to increase housing supply, not deter it.
Homeowners are not large corporate landlords, and applying the same standards to them as to corporate property owners is leading to a reduction in home rentals.
Provisions such as requiring a minimum one-year lease term, mandating three months’ rent as compensation upon lease termination, and allowing renters up to two years to return to a rental are not satisfactory for homeowners.
Fortunately, there is a straightforward solution to these issues. The ordinance should be revised to exempt homeowners with a “homeowners exemption.” This change would allow homeowners to rent rooms and units without fearing the loss of control over their property.
Rentals in homes differ fundamentally from those in large apartment buildings. Rental relationships in homes are less formal and more personal.
Homeowners lack the legal resources of large apartment owners. Applying the same standards to homeowners as to corporations will only reduce home rentals.
The Board of Supervisors should amend the county rental ordinance to exclude homes with a homeowners exemption, benefiting both homeowners and renters.