TO: CITY COUNCIL
FROM: ADAM PIRRIE, CITY MANAGER
DATE: JULY 14, 2026
Reviewed by:
City Manager: AP
SUBJECT:
Title
RENT STABILIZATION DISCUSSION (FUNDING SOURCE: GENERAL FUND)
Body
SUMMARY
Housing affordability continues to be a significant concern in Claremont and throughout California. Since 2022, the Claremont City Council has implemented several tenant protection measures, including a local Just Cause Eviction Ordinance, an Anti-Harassment Ordinance, and the Claremont Temporary Housing Stabilization and Relocation Program, while previously electing not to pursue a local rent stabilization ordinance or rental registry. As housing affordability remains an ongoing community concern, Mayor Jennifer Stark requested an update on rent stabilization policies adopted by other jurisdictions. This report also outlines several policy options for the City Council's consideration.
RECOMMENDATION
Recommended Action
Staff recommends the City Council receive and file an update on rent stabilization policies in Los Angeles County and surrounding jurisdictions and provide direction to staff.
Body
ALTERNATIVE TO RECOMMENDATION
In addition to the recommendation, there is the following alternative:
• Request additional information from staff.
FINANCIAL REVIEW
The staff costs associated with conducting research and preparing this report are estimated at $1,000 and are included in the operating budget of the Administrative Services Department.
If the City Council pursues new policies or programs, there may be significant additional costs related to staff time. Additionally, legal fees would be billed hourly at the contract rate as a special legal service.
ANALYSIS
Background
Housing affordability continues to be a significant issue throughout California, including in Claremont. Over the past several years, Claremont renters have raised concerns regarding annual rent increases, lack of available affordable rental units, Ratio Utility Billing Systems, changes in property ownership, and the difficulty of remaining housed in Claremont as rents increase faster than wages or fixed incomes.
Many of these concerns became more pronounced beginning in 2022, as pandemic-era eviction protections began to sunset and tenants were required to repay past-due rent or face potential eviction for nonpayment. In response, the City Council has considered and implemented several tenant protection and housing stability measures:
• On October 25, 2022, the City Council adopted an urgency ordinance and introduced a regular ordinance placing a temporary moratorium on certain no-fault residential evictions based on a property owner’s intent to substantially remodel a rental unit. The City Council also directed staff to conduct additional outreach regarding potential tenant protection ordinances, including a permanent just cause eviction ordinance and rent stabilization ordinance.
• On April 25, 2023, the City Council approved the Claremont Temporary Housing Stabilization and Relocation Program and allocated $1 million in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds to support the program. On April 23, 2024, the City Council allocated an additional $680,000 from the City’s General Fund, bringing the total program allocation to $1.68 million. At its April 14, 2026, meeting, the City Council allocated an additional $360,000 from the City’s Successor Housing Fund to the Claremont Temporary Housing Stabilization and Relocation Program to sustain the program through December 31, 2026. Since its inception, the City Council has allocated $2.04 million in funding to the program, and provided rental assistance to more than 200 Claremont households.
• On May 9, 2023, the Claremont City Council approved a first reading and introduction of a "Just Cause Eviction" Ordinance. The City Council opted not to pursue a "Rent Stabilization" Ordinance during this meeting.
• On May 23, 2023, the City Council adopted a local Just Cause Eviction Ordinance, codified in Chapter 8.34 of the Claremont Municipal Code. The ordinance incorporates the just cause provisions of AB 1482 while providing heightened protections for substantial remodel evictions and increased relocation assistance for no-fault evictions. The ordinance narrows the definition of substantial remodel, requires property owners to obtain building permits prior to terminating a tenancy for substantial remodel work, requires a detailed scope of work, and increases relocation assistance to three months’ rent. Properties with nine or fewer units are exempt.
• On May 13, 2025, the City Council introduced on first reading an ordinance that prohibits harassment in rental housing. This ordinance was adopted during the May 27, 2025, City Council meeting and went into effect on June 26, 2025. The ordinance is self-governing and prohibits tenant-on-tenant, tenant-on-landlord, and landlord-on-tenant harassment. The City Council also considered establishing a rental registry. A rental registry could allow the City to collect data regarding rental properties, rent increases, tenant turnover, lease terms, utility billing practices, and evictions. However, a motion to begin the process of establishing a rental registry and adding staff resources to manage the program did not pass. Based on estimates received from vendors, annual rental registry costs for Claremont were projected to range between approximately $60,000 and $87,600 in the first year and between approximately $54,180 and $83,200 in subsequent years, excluding additional staff or consultant costs.
Recently Enacted or Amended Rent Stabilization Policies
Rent stabilization policies vary widely across Los Angeles County. Recent models include fixed caps, CPI-based formulas, partial CPI formulas, and tiered formulas based on property size. The most restrictive formulas generally require greater administrative infrastructure, including rent registries, petition procedures, appeals processes, and dedicated staff or commissions.
Several Los Angeles County jurisdictions have adopted or amended local rent stabilization policies in recent years. These programs vary significantly in terms of rent increase formulas, exemptions, administrative requirements, and enforcement mechanisms. While not exhaustive, the following examples illustrate a range of approaches that cities have used to establish their annual allowable rent increase rates.
Pasadena
Pasadena voters approved Measure H in November 2022, establishing a rent stabilization program and creating the Pasadena Rental Housing Board. Pasadena’s rent increase formula is based on seventy-five percent of the annual change in the Consumer Price Index (CPI). The Annual General Adjustment effective October 1, 2025 through September 30, 2026 is 2.25 percent.
Pasadena’s program also included a rent rollback provision, with base rent tied to the rent in effect on May 17, 2021 for certain tenancies. Pasadena's voter-approved Measure H established one of the more tenant-protective local rent stabilization programs in the region. The ordinance limits annual rent adjustments to 75 percent of CPI and created an independent Rental Housing Board to administer and enforce the program. Additionally, Pasadena’s Rent Stabilization Department operates a mandatory rental registry.
Culver City
Culver City adopted permanent rent control and tenant protection measures in 2020. The City caps annual rent increases at an amount tied to the CPI. Culver City’s formula generally provides a two percent minimum when CPI is below two percent and a five percent maximum when CPI exceeds five percent.
The maximum permissible annual rent increase for increases effective on or after June 1, 2026 through July 31, 2027 is 3.25 percent. Culver City publishes allowable rent increases on a regular basis and operates a rental registry. Landlords may seek rent adjustments if they can demonstrate that the rent limitation prevents a fair and reasonable return.
Pomona
The City of Pomona adopted an updated Rent Stabilization and Eviction Control Ordinance in 2025, with the updated ordinance effective January 1, 2026. When the Pomona City Council updated its ordinance, they specifically removed the requirement for a rental registry and its associated administrative fees to save the city and housing providers on operating costs. The ordinance limits residential rent increases for covered units to five percent per year and allows only one rent increase in a twelve-month period. Pomona’s formula is a fixed cap rather than a CPI-based formula.
Pomona’s ordinance allows tenants to dispute ineligible rent increases and allows landlords to petition for rent increases above the published rate to maintain a fair and reasonable return or recover certain capital improvement costs. The ordinance also includes just cause eviction provisions and relocation assistance requirements for qualifying no-fault evictions.
Inglewood
The City of Inglewood adopted a rent stabilization program in 2019. Inglewood uses a tiered formula based partly on the number of units on the property. Currently, the published CPI figure is 3.7 percent. For properties with four units or fewer, the allowable increase is five percent plus CPI, resulting in an 8.7 percent allowable increase. For properties with five or more units, the allowable increase is three percent or CPI, whichever is greater, resulting in a 3.7 percent allowable increase. Housing providers in Inglewood must register their rental properties and report rent increases through the online Inglewood Residential Registry portal.
Inglewood also allows additional increases in certain circumstances for rents that are below eighty percent of Fair Market Rent, subject to approval, with all rent increases capped at ten percent.
Baldwin Park
Baldwin Park has a rent stabilization ordinance that applies to certain residential rental units, generally including units built before January 1, 1995, subject to exemptions. Effective January 17, 2026, the maximum allowable rent increase is restricted to 3.0 percent.
Baldwin Park’s formula allows rent increases based on CPI with a maximum annual increase of five percent and a minimum increase of one percent if CPI is below one percent. Baldwin Park also requires annual rent registration for covered units.
Unincorporated Los Angeles County
The Los Angeles County Rent Stabilization and Tenant Protections Ordinance applies in unincorporated areas of Los Angeles County. Beginning in 2025, annual rent increases for fully covered units are limited to sixty percent of the percentage change in the average CPI over the prior twelve-month period ending in September, not to exceed three percent.
For the period July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2026, the maximum allowable rent increase is 1.930 percent for general units, 2.930 percent for qualifying small property landlords, and 3.930 percent for qualifying luxury units. For the period July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027, the maximum allowable rent increase is 1.919 percent for general units, 2.919 percent for qualifying small property landlords, and 3.919 percent for qualifying luxury units.
The County’s program includes a rent registry, administrative oversight, appeals processes, and a Rental Housing Oversight Commission.
City of Los Angeles
The City of Los Angeles has had a Rent Stabilization Ordinance (RSO) for decades, generally applying to older multifamily rental units. In 2026, Los Angeles amended its annual allowable rent increase formula. The amended formula sets the annual rent increase at ninety percent of average CPI, with a minimum of one percent and a maximum of four percent.
The City of Los Angeles has also eliminated certain additional percentage increases that were previously permitted for utilities and additional dependent occupants. Unless specifically exempted from RSO registration, housing providers in the City of Los Angeles cannot legally collect rent from a tenant unless their annual rental registry fees are paid.
Policy Options
The City Council may consider the following options when providing direction to staff:
Option 1: Receive and File
The City Council may receive and file this report and take no further action at this time. Under this option, Claremont renters would continue to benefit from existing tenant protections provided under applicable local and state laws. These protections include the California Tenant Protection Act of 2019 (AB 1482), which generally limits annual rent increases for covered residential properties to five percent plus the applicable Consumer Price Index (CPI), or ten percent, whichever is lower, as well as the City's Just Cause Eviction Ordinance, Anti-Harassment Ordinance, and referrals to third-party legal and housing resources.
Option 2: Reconsider a Rental Registry
The City Council may direct staff to further evaluate a rental registry as a data collection tool. A registry could support future policy discussions by providing information regarding rent increases, ownership, tenancy changes, and eviction activity. It should be noted that a registry would require funding, staffing, vendor support, and consideration of whether registration fees would be passed through to tenants or create additional costs for property owners.
As was reported last year, staff has not been able to identify any city that has a rental registry and does not have any designated city staff positions who provide internal and external rental registry support. Additionally, City of Claremont staff spoke with staff from other cities who have rental registries as well as rental registry vendors to verify that rental registries are generally not implemented without support from city staff, even when there is third-party consultant support involved, which is rare. Some examples of staff time would include contract management (with the software provider and/or a third-party rental registry consultant); data collection and analysis; public information/community outreach; and customer service.
In addition to staff time, there is the option to contract with a consultant who specializes in rental registry development and management. Most cities structure their rental registries in a way where city staff works directly with the software provider to implement and manage rental registries; however, the City of Pasadena contracted with Bhyv Consulting to assist them with establishing a rental registry and to develop a staffing plan for Pasadena’s Rental Housing Board. The total contract cost was $425,000, which breaks down to an approximate $250/hour consultant rate. Specifically, the rental registration component of their contract (which involved researching rent registry programs; executing a vendor contract for database build; implementation; providing technical support for rent registry; and outreach) cost $250,000.
Option 3: Direct Staff to Prepare a Rent Stabilization Framework
The City Council may direct staff and the City Attorney to conduct additional research regarding a potential local rent stabilization program and return at a future City Council meeting with a draft framework for consideration. The framework would identify key policy considerations, including, but not limited to, covered units; exemptions; the methodology for calculating allowable annual rent increases; landlord petition processes; relocation assistance requirements; administrative and enforcement responsibilities; and potential implementation timelines. At that future meeting, staff would seek policy direction from the City Council regarding these components before preparing any implementing ordinance.
Should the City Council ultimately choose to pursue a local rent stabilization ordinance, implementation would likely require additional staffing, administrative infrastructure, and ongoing funding. Potential budgetary impacts could include the addition of unbudgeted staff positions; legal support; enforcement and compliance activities; information technology or database systems; and other administrative costs necessary to implement and administer the program. The scope of these staffing and fiscal impacts would depend on the policy direction ultimately provided by the City Council, and staff would return with recommended staffing levels, cost estimates, and potential funding options as part of a future report.
RELATIONSHIP TO CITY PLANNING DOCUMENTS
Staff has evaluated the agenda item in relationship to the City’s strategic and visioning documents and finds that it applies to the following City Planning Documents: Sustainable City Plan.
CEQA REVIEW
This item is not subject to environmental review under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).
PUBLIC NOTICE PROCESS
The agenda and staff report for this item have been posted on the City website and distributed to interested parties. If you desire a copy, please contact the City Clerk’s Office.
Submitted by: Prepared by:
Adam Pirrie Katie Wand
City Manager Deputy City Manager
Attachment:
Public Comment