A Redwood City man said he's being evicted from his apartment for no reason, and he's not the only one.
The city has seen a spike in complaints about evictions ahead of a new state law that will make it illegal for landlords to push out tenants without a valid reason. For one longtime renter at the Brewster Place Apartments who's been ordered to leave his home, Redwood City leaders have stepped in, and now he may be able to stay.
Andrew Leakakos has lived at Brewster Place for 20 years, and he was planning to stay at least a decade more. On Nov. 1, he received a 60-day notice taped to his front door and mailbox.
"It's very discouraging," Leakakos said. "I always pay one day in advance; I have for the past 20 years, never have been late."
Leakakos suspects the eviction is in anticipation of new legislation going into effect on Jan. 1. AB 1482 requires landlords to have a valid reason to remove a tenant.
Redwood city leaders took action, passing an urgency ordinance last week to prevent tenants from being displaced.
"We've been hearing a lot of reports in the last few weeks since the state law was passed," Mayor Ian Bain said. "Our city staff acted very quickly to put an ordinance together that basically puts the new state law into effect immediately."
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Bay Area Assemblyman David Chiu authored the legislation and supports Redwood City's action.
"It is a shame that some unscrupulous landlords have chosen to exacerbate displacement and homelessness in order to make obscene profits," Chiu said. "These tactics are exactly why we passed ab 1482."
Leakakos's notice was issued three days after the urgency ordinance went into effect, and he's ready to fight so he can stay home.
"In my case, they're just simply disregarding the law," he said. "The law is pretty clear. I don't think they have a leg to stand on."
The city is providing residents with resources for legal aid if they need to fight an eviction.
Bain said because the ordinance is so new, the city is in the process of notifying owners that they now have to prove their valid reasons for evictions or big rent hikes.
