Is There A True Ellis Act Eviction Epidemy—A Study In Reading Statistics

On March 23, 2015, the Rent Board published its annual statistical report on eviction notices, filed with the Board from March 1, 2014, through February 28, 2015. Page 2 shows a break-down by the types of notices and their change in usage in comparison to the previous year. I noticed a 48% decline in filed notices under the Ellis Act cause for eviction, and wondered, whether this decline is connected with the last year's attempt to increase the relocation payments due to the tenants to some cosmic amount, something the courts currently holding as unreasonable and unconstitutional. I saw it closely related, and along with that I also made several peculiar findings on how statistics work in scaling up (scarring up?) the reported amount of the Ellis Act evictions.

Tenant Buyout Forms are out

The "Buyout Ordinance," S.F. Admin Code, Section Section 37.9E, is now fully in force, and the Rent Board had made the new forms coming with it:

Pre-Buyout Negotiations Disclosure Form Required by Ordinance Section 37.9E.

Declaration of Landlord Regarding Service of Pre-Buyout Negotiations Disclosure Form.

New practice of S.F. tax assessor requesting extensive info

A new practice of assessing the property tax gains speed in San Francisco. No longer it is enough to report your sale's price to establish the new value. Instead, new owners now receive a letter like this from the San Francisco Tax Assessor Office. It asks the new buyer about a lot of additional information, even some that buyer may not even know, such as future rent values. What a buyer to do?