BPOA News & Commentary

This section houses newsletters and select articles—including President’s Messages and guest-written editorials—from BPOA’s archive dating back to 2008. Explore past issues to see how Berkeley’s rental housing landscape has evolved.

Free Resources Policy & Regulatory

November 2014 Issue
November 2014 Issue

Inside this issue: No to No Pets; Section 8 Update; Rent Control in Marin?; A Letter on the Downtown Measure R; SF Fights the Ellis; A Knife to the Heart; Follow-Up on the SF Ellis Pacific Legal Foundation; and more... Continue Reading

Postedby BPOA Master
Date posted11/1/2014


October 2014 Issue
October 2014 Issue

Inside this issue: A Cautionary Tale; To Refi or Not Refi; EBMUD Tips; Alameda; Audit Finds Flaws; SF Judge Denies Restraining Order; Remedies to Rental Shortage; SF Housing Crisis; Add Units with Seismic Work; Affordable Units Protected; and more... Continue Reading

Postedby BPOA Master
Date posted10/1/2014


September 2014 Issue
September 2014 Issue

Inside this issue: Tenant Scams; Decision on Earthquake Liability; Airbnb Squatter; Poor Doors in West Hollywood; PFL Takes Landlord Case; SF Landlords Sue Over Relocation Fees; New Grand Jury Investigation; and more... Continue Reading

Postedby BPOA Master
Date posted09/1/2014


August 2014 Issue
August 2014 Issue

Inside this issue: Section 8 Rents; Median Price Hits 7-Figure High in SF; Airline-Style Pricing Hits NYC; Airbnb Scandal; Santa Monica Ballot Measures; Tenants' Right to Counsel; Bedbug Sniffing Dogs; 84 Square Feet; and more... Continue Reading

Postedby BPOA Master
Date posted08/1/2014


June 2014 Issue
June 2014 Issue

Inside this issue: Rents Rise, Encouraging Fraud; End to Prop 13 Tax Loophole; SF Section 8 Evictions; Limits to Ellis Act; AB 1513; Short Term Rentals; Piedmont Housing Element; and more... Continue Reading

Postedby BPOA Master
Date posted06/1/2014


May 2014 Issue
May 2014 Issue

Inside this issue: Los Angeles Evictions; Security Deposit Rules; Mensa Humor II & Discounts; Berkeley Redistricting; Student Move-Out Official Flyer; Student Move-Out Press Release; Top Paid Berkeley Jobs; Workshop Information; and more... Continue Reading

Postedby BPOA Master
Date posted05/1/2014


April 2014 Issue
April 2014 Issue

Inside this issue: Michael St. John; SF Illegal Units; Smoking; One Third Rule Not Feasible; Condo Conversion Update; Oakland Decides on Landlord Improvements; Sugar Tax for Berkeley; Workshop Information; Squatting; and more... Continue Reading

Postedby BPOA Master
Date posted04/1/2014


March 2014 Issue
March 2014 Issue

Inside this issue: Michael St. John; How to Not Get Sued; Filth and Fear; Anti-Speculation Program; Rent Control Returns to Capital; Rent Control Culver City; Workshop Information; Confronting the Speculators; The Dos and Don'ts of Tenant Selection; and more... Continue Reading

Postedby BPOA Master
Date posted03/1/2014


February 2014 Issue
February 2014 Issue

Inside this issue: Michael St. John; Downtown Berkeley Housing Boom; Irish Rent Control; Is Rent Control Hurting SF Middle Class?; City of Richmond & Local Clean Energy; Marty and Casey; Taking SF Evictions to Sacramento; Hoarding; and more... Continue Reading

Postedby BPOA Master
Date posted02/1/2014


January 2014 Issue
January 2014 Issue

Inside this issue: Michael St. John; Board Provides Tenants a Lifeline; Proposed Ellis Act Revisions; Professional Management Q&A; Oklahoma Kangaroo; Tobacco Free Multi-Units; Political Extortion? & Quote of the Month; Harvard Study; and more... Continue Reading

Postedby BPOA Master
Date posted01/1/2014


December 2013 Issue
December 2013 Issue

Inside this issue: Second Hand Smoke; Rent Control in Santa Monica; Canine Tenants & Grants Available; Professional Management Q&A; Fake Landlord Rental Scheme; Energy Saving Rebates & Quote of the Month; Letter from the League of Women Voters; Invitation to the Winter Dinner; and more... Continue Reading

Postedby BPOA Master
Date posted12/1/2013


October 2013 Issue
October 2013 Issue

Inside this issue: The Open House; New Jersey Seniors Rent Control; California Bill to Restore Local Control; Rent Increases Approved for Rent Controlled; Meeting & Workshop Information; Perverse Effects of Rent Control; Abolishing Rent Control is Stupid; and more... Continue Reading

Postedby BPOA Master
Date posted10/1/2013