One day following an NBC Bay Area story on the possible eviction of Helen Byrne, 94, from her San Francisco apartment of eight decades, the property's owners say they now plan to allow Byrne and the building's other tenants to remain in their homes.
“While the initial decision to purchase a rental property was made with the intention of investment, the goals for this property have since changed – with a focus on people over profits," said Dan Mytels, the manager of the LLC that owns the property, in a written statement.
The building was purchased in 2020 by real estate investors through an LLC. After the tenants turned down buyout offers in the range of $70,000 to $85,000 per unit, the landlords invoked the Ellis Act, which allows them to evict their tenants if they take the property off the rental market for at least five years.
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The landlords said the combined rent from the building's four rent-controlled units, $3,800, was not enough to cover the operating costs of the building, such as property taxes, maintenance, and insurance.
With the help of the Tenderloin Housing Clinic, a nonprofit that fights displacement of vulnerable San Francisco residents, the tenants were fighting the eviction in court.
The property's other tenants said one of the reasons they decided to fight the eviction in court was because their elderly neighbor had nowhere to go.
"Right now, she is strong because of this building," said Cecilia Matias, who lives in the building and helps take care of Byrne. "This apartment alone makes her feel that she's home."
The building's residents, including Byrne, who is mostly bedridden now, were at risk of being forced out of their homes in the coming weeks.
Now, however, saying some decisions "go beyond the bottom line," the building's owners told NBC they're dropping the pursuit of the evictions.
"When we learned of 94-year-old Helen Byrne’s long history in this building and saw her new health condition and felt her deep community there, we decided we had to commit to keeping Ms. Byrne and the other residents in their homes," Mytels wrote.
Steve Collier, managing attorney at the Tenderloin Housing Clinic, said "we are glad to learn the landlord has decided to do the right thing."
"The tenants are also happy they just regret having to go through the anxiety and stress of facing an eviction," Collier said.
It's currently unclear what kind of arrangement the building's owners will reach with their tenants, but they’ve submitted dismissals of the evictions and Mytels said they plan to work out the details in the near future.
"In the coming weeks, we will work out the specific details and next steps regarding the future of this property and we will make every effort to ensure that residents can stay in their homes long-term," Mytels wrote.
Here's Mytels' full statement:
“While the initial decision to purchase a rental property was made with the intention of investment, the goals for this property have since changed – with a focus on people over profits. Upon deep reflection of the situation, we have made the decision to allow the residents of [Cesar Chavez Street] to stay.
When we learned of 94-year-old Helen Byrne’s long history in this building and saw her new health condition and felt her deep community there, we decided we had to commit to keeping Ms. Byrne and the other residents in their homes. In the coming weeks, we will work out the specific details and next steps regarding the future of this property and we will make every effort to ensure that residents can stay in their homes long-term.
While we feel strongly that this is the right thing to do, we think it is equally important to note that these renters were offered very generous buyout offers, and the current combined rent of the four units - $3800 – is not nearly enough to cover even basic operating costs including property taxes, maintenance, insurance, water, trash pickup and recycling for this San Francisco property. Even with that indisputable financial reality, we still believe some decisions in life go beyond the bottom line.
We live in a world that can feel deeply divided, and ultimately, it’s our humanity that brings us together. It is our hope and our belief, that we have demonstrated our commitment to community.”
