With ‘deplorable’ conditions for some renters, Long Beach debates inspections

Story about the harsh living conditions some renters in Long Beach find themselves in.

News Story (California)

Ben Welsh
Los Angeles Times (LA Times)
June 2, 2015
Full story

Tags: Housing: Landlord-Tenant

Organizations mentioned/involved: Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles (LAFLA)

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DETAILS

Renter advocates say any regulatory program that relies on complaints plays into the hands of bad landlords who can exploit vulnerable parts of the population.

“This is part of the business model: Poor, low-income immigrants who won’t complain, who are in dire straits, who are one bad break away from the streets,” said Fernando Gaytan, an attorney at Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles.

The question of whether tougher enforcement, more tenant education programs — or both — are needed to improve housing conditions for residents, particularly those at bottom of the economic ladder, falls to a newly reconstituted City Council in which a majority of members took office in the last year.