A proposed rental relief bill for Montgomery County would halt residential rent increases during the coronavirus public health emergency.
County Council Member Will Jawando, who sponsored the legislation introduced on Tuesday, said at the council’s meeting that several residents reported their landlords trying to increase rent up to 60%.
The temporary rent freeze would last until 30 days after the public health emergency ends. The bill would “sunset,” or expire, 120 days after the emergency ends.
Residential landlords are required to give 90 days’ notice of a rent increase.
The county’s renters tend to be lower-income and are at high risk of contracting coronavirus disease from others since they often live in close quarters, Jawando said.
“There’s a lot of anxiety going on right now in our multi-family renting population. Many are struggling,” he said during the meeting. He added that unemployment continues to rise in the county.
The county’s Department of Housing and Community Affairs, or DHCA, has been hearing about the problem every day, he said.
Jawando said DHCA staff members have been negotiating with landlords on behalf of residents. Those places include the Gallery in Bethesda, The Grand in North Bethesda and The Galaxy in Silver Spring.
“These were decisions that had to be made in March for increases that would be made by July,” Jawndo said.
Many landlords and property owners are not trying to increase rent, he said.
On Tuesday, the Montgomery County, Greater Bethesda and Greater Silver Spring chambers of Commerce wrote to Jawando that they were “deeply disappointed by the reckless statements” he made about rent increases on April 8 on a show called “Rising” produced by The Hill.
“The most offensive premise of the interview was the impression that rent gouging was a rampant and widespread issue,” the letter says. The chambers wrote that they were “taken aback” by his allegations on the show of rent increases of up to 40% during the pandemic, so they asked their landlord members and none reported any rent increase.
Jawando “unfairly painted the entire industry in such a negative light,” they wrote.
During the interview on “Rising,” Jawando did not say rent increases were rampant or widespread. He said there have been “multiple reports” people getting notices that their rent is going up 20, 30 or 40%.
He also said that renters are worried about how to pay rent and that “some” of them have had their rent increase. He mentioned that about a third of the county’s population are renters.
The Apartment and Office Building Association in Montgomery County, which represents about 70% of the rental units in the county, already suspended rent increases for all of its properties, according to Council Member Evan Glass.
“The problem is, as I’ve cited, there’s people who aren’t doing it and it’s not just at one property or so. There’s multiple,” Jawando said.
DHCA considers an increase of 10% or more to be excessive and constructive eviction. Jawando said on the show that he has seen “multiple reports at 20, 30, 40%.”
Although the department can negotiate for the tenant, there is no current requirement for the rent increase to be reduced, Jawando said during Tuesday’s meeting.
Jawando considered including commercial rent in the bill, but did not add it after receiving feedback from other council members.
Before the bill was introduced at the meeting, Council Member Nancy Navarro suggested changes that would tighten the language and order that the temporary rent freeze be specifically for the coronavirus pandemic.
“When I first looked at the bill, the one thing that stood out for me is it seemed to be a bit broad,” she said.
Council Member Craig Rice stressed that the council was aware that most landlords are not trying to gouge rents on residents.
“There are a few outliers out there, so that’s what this is about,” he said. “I want to make sure that my constituency of landlords know that this is no casting of dispersion of negativity against you. … We have to legislate based on the fact that some people choose not to do the right things.”
Council President Sidney Katz said he spoke with many landlords over the last several days who were angry because they felt they were being cast in an unfair light.
“This is about the very few landlords. This is about the exception, rather than the rule, by far,” he said.
Many landlords have said they are already expecting to have to decrease rent in the coming months because of renters losing jobs, Council Member Hans Riemer said.
He said he has also heard from residents who have had landlords try to increase rent.
“It is a situation where I think everybody is in it together and we do need to find a solution that can help address the problem,” he said. “In this case, there is a problem.”
Briana Adhikusuma can be reached at briana.adhikusuma@moco360.media.
