City Extends Protections for Renters Facing Foreclosure-Related Evictions

A unanimous Los Angeles City Council voted Tuesday to extend for a year protections afforded renters facing evictions because of foreclosures.

A 2008 foreclosure-prevention law was set to expire, but the City Council extended it through the end of 2012, citing an ongoing foreclosure crisis.

"This moratorium will prevent good tenants from losing their homes simply because their landlord falls into foreclosure," City Council President Eric Garcetti said. "It's better for families and for our neighborhoods to keep people in their homes."

The city's Rent Stabilization Ordinance protected renters in pre-1978 properties from eviction solely due to ownership changes. Garcetti's 2008 ordinance extended protection to all renters from eviction due to foreclosure.

Garcetti, who represents a portion of Hollywood, said the extension was needed because the foreclosure crisis has not abated. In the first nine months of this year, about 7,600 properties had been subject to foreclosure, he wrote in a motion approved by the council today.

According to U.S. Census Bureau data, 20-25 percent of all single-family homes in the city are occupied by renters.