Ayla not her real name has lived in the Wedgewood Apartments in Bloomfield nearly all her life. As Engels wrote in 1872: As long as the capitalist mode of production continues to exist, it is folly to hope for an isolated solution to the housing question. Potential laws include: Rent control that would limit how much a landlord could increase prices annually. The CARES Act eviction moratorium has expired, but the CDC has issued an extension for counties where there are high transmission rates of COVID-19 under pressure from Congresswomen Corey Bush and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. If you have a lawful reason to evict a tenant that is in a union, or is forming or joining one, you may want to carefully document your reasons. A MyHoopty representative who would only identify himself as Jason said there were more than 50 abandoned vehicles at Seramonte Estatesprior to the company being hired. Organizing for tenants rights to us means organizing tenant unions and building associations, building tenant power for the long-term. In many ways, a tenant union is similar to a labor union. One tenant with legitimate complaints about building safety, high rent, maintenance issues, landlord harassment, and other harmful practices is easy to ignore. So, you got acquainted with each other on common grounds. Also, you may want to talk to a lawyer to make sure you are not walking into a costly retaliation claim. Tenant organizing grew in popularity. Takes action to win homes for people. To redress the balance of powe. The tenants may negotiate over general lease terms and advocate for the landlord to take certain actions. Tenants live in neglected, unsafe housing, we face harassment from landlords, and we experience the trauma of housing insecurity and eviction. This list is not exhaustive and only outlines the world of possibilities once you and your fellow tenants decide enough is enough. Housing groups take a page from the labor movement in push for building improvements, eviction delays. Now that youre familiar with your legal rights as a tenant. Federal and state laws protect tenants' rights to form a union. Even though her grandmother tries to distract her from the chipped paint with toys, she still calls the bathtub scary. These are human beings being subjected to this type of living, Kirton said. Curry is hardly alone in her frustration. Increased tenant satisfaction generally leads to higher retention rates and may even help to increase rents. We are committed to language justice and aspire to create fully language-accessible spaces. The purpose of the initial meeting includes: introductions, taking notes, filling out a sign-up sheet with contact information (if those attending are willing), and a brief explanation of your purpose. They must send you something in writing regarding the debt within five days of calling you. Currently tenant unions have fought off rent increases, evictions, and displacement in California and around the country without rent control and just cause eviction laws in place. Pine & Roses is a state-wide publication dedicated to building solidarity with working-class, feminist, anti-racist, indigenous, ecological, immigrant, LGTBQ, housing, and education struggles from Kittery to Calais, from Madawaska to Rumford. The main impact a tenant union has on landlords is that it changes how you bargain with your tenants, and may change how maintenance and repairs get done. Landlords can benefit from tenant unions by using them to help maintain good tenant relations. But towing isnt the only issue. Resolving these crises will necessitate overthrowing capitalism and establishing a cooperative political and economic system. Maybe the building you live in is falling apart. I feel it was discriminatory, Pisani said, tying her union membership to her eviction. When tenants work together, they can apply more pressure to make a landlord provide services, make repairs, and stop harassmentand get the best possible home for the rent they're paying. For legal advice, please ask a lawyer. Localities can set aside money to help these organizations, and the government can step in to ensure tenants voices are heard by requiring that housing authorities allocate funding for tenant councils, particularly for federal housing overseen by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Simmons said. Editors Note: This story was produced through a partnership with the Connecticut Mirror and Connecticut Public Radio. (Tenants protesting their mega-landlord Veritas in San Francisco). Indigenous communities are some of the most deeply affected by the tenant crisis. North Point Management Corporation took over at Seramonte in 2020. By Matt Stevens. Tenant unions are becoming increasingly common. The Tenants Union fights for housing justice through education, organizing and advocacy. Why form a Tenants Union? This might be in your apartment complex,on your block or in your neighbors kitchen. Whether its subsidized housing or non subsidized housing. Do you go extended periods of time without heat or hot water? Renewal could be automatic if you don't do something to tell your landlord you're planning to move when the lease ends. Tenants unions form as collective bargaining organizations to address issues such as maintenance problems, rent raises and evictions, among other disputes. This might include things like: Laws vary by state, so it is a good idea to discuss any actions you plan to take with a lawyer. Organization can seem intimidating. John Carl D'Annibale/Times Union. 5 talking about this. The management office does not get involved in towing, the sign read. 90% of our revenue is contributed. Tenant unions, rent control, and other renter-friendly measures have become increasingly popular over the last few years. Coral Howe is a member of the Pine and Roses Editorial collective. Retaliation is when you take an action against a tenant because of their participation in a union. There are no legal requirements around forming a tenant association. Here's how his salary compares to Kentucky superintendents, How a new Louisville group is helping renters fight for better housing and win, A tenants union is typically a nonprofit or grassroots group, What's it like to rent in Louisville? Currys family found the Wedgewood Apartments in 2019 after a stint of homelessness. MyHoopty will only accept payments for cars in cash, with exact change, he said. ACORN (UK wide) - direct action union. Its been hard for me to at nights look my children in the eyes, and knowing that there are residents in our town, little kids, your daughter, he said, gesturing to Kristine Pisani, another union member. The Tenants Union fights for housing justice through education, organizing and advocacy. You dont need every single tenant on board to form a union. You may have a third, fourth, and fifth meeting. But the recent movement is leading to other potential protections. You may, however, be limited in certain respects depending on any agreements you may have made with the union. Earlier this month, tenants met with city officials to discuss solutions. In May, union members discovered a sign above the door to the office when they tried to speak to management. Please reload the page and try again. I dont want to sleep outside, Curry said, pointing to her granddaughter. Tenants who join unions are shielded from landlord retaliation for six months after the union forms, according to a law passed in the 1970s. Why should we form a tenant association? Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX) tells CNN's Jake Tapper he thinks Ukraine should be admitted to NATO after the war, but they would need to meet certain qualifications. July 14, 2023, 2:52 p.m. Incorporate for FREE + hire a lawyer with up to 40% off*. Louisville Tenants Union:Call 502-438-9048 or email loutenantsunion@gmail.com. The more unified you can be, the stronger your seed will grow. In your letter to the landlord, you can include the announcement of your unionization, the reason for writing your letter, and outline your demands. New Directions Tenants Union: Email loundtu@protonmail.com. All of us have fear and shame that we must take head-on and let go of for us to move forward. The Louisville Tenants Union meets every other Sunday to discuss individual member issues and group campaigns. As a group, tenants can identify systematic problems in their building. Youve formed a union, the atmosphere is filled with the sense of your newfound power, and now its time to pen a letter. National Movement - Take the Homes For All pledge https://homesforall.org/pledge/, Tenant Defense Toolkit / Gua de Defensa de Inquilines, Local Resource Directory / Gua de Recursos Locales, Tenants' Rights Hotline / Lnea de Derechos de Inquilines, https://www.tenantstogether.org/member-organizations-0, Check out this recent article on the work we and Homes for All are doing. After holding online conventions in October 2020 and October 2021, we held an in-person convention in July 2022 in Los Angeles, bringing together 200 tenant organizers from 25 tenant unions across the United States. If the eviction is due to nonpayment of rent, a landlord is required to give 10 days' notice prior to filing for eviction. We organize because we seek to transform people's fear and isolation into dignity and solidarity both in your home, community and on a statewide level. Sometimes smaller assemblies with a core group are better at first. Depending on the urgency of the issues youre facing, this may be sooner than later. Step 1: PLANT A SEED - FORM an Organizing Team and Join Tenants Together/Homes For All, Statewide movement - Join Tenants Together as a Member Organization or Partner https://www.tenantstogether.org/member-organizations-0, National Movement - Take Homes For All pledge https://homesforall.org/pledge/. Most landlords pay tenant screening companies to research potential tenants, including criminal background checks, credit checks, eviction and court records, employment history and rental histories. Tenants' unions are building, neighborhood or city-based organizations made up of and led by renters themselves to fight for our collective interests and rights. ET. But since then, conditions have deteriorated. Landlord lobbyists, corporate developers, and realtors oppose rent control and have a lot of power in the state, so passing rent control isnt easy. She points to recent nationwide-first legislation in San Francisco that requires landlords to at least meet with tenant unions. Its helpful to assign a note taker so you can share the meetings ideas with everyone. All are led by tenants, who help dictatehow the unions are organized and run. 1. If youve been an exceptional tenant, once your lease expires, you can be evicted. How do we build enough power to stay in our homes, communities and thrive?! Renters in Scotland face many issues and the precarious nature of the rental market can often leave tenants feeling powerless. Tenant under lease. Just like with labor unions, different geographical areas may be more supportive of the idea of tenant unions, and individual tenants may also have different opinions on them. We are not under the direction of paid staff, boards of directors, or state agencies, and we are funded primarily by our members rather than by grants or major donors. An organized group of tenants with a list of specific demands is more likely to get a landlord negotiating. We have to be here for more [time] and I cry. You want to find out what issues are not being addressed, and hear out all of those with grievances, questions, and concerns. Generally, if you do not pay rent, you could be evicted. Her sewage has been backed up, she said, and a few months ago authorities were called to the apartment to respond to a gas leak. They towed Boudreaus car and took possession he doesnt know if it was sold or scrapped after he was injured slipping in the icy parking lot. Oh, look, I found a letter template here! She covers a variety of topics ranging from child welfare to affordable housing and zoning. We define a tenant as anyone who does not have control over their housing. It wasnt registered, he said, but hed talked to management about how the DMV office was closed, so he couldnt fix it immediately. She and other residents at Wedgewood decided to fight back by forming a tenants union one piece in a growing movement across Connecticut. Reporters reached out more than half a dozen times over two months this summer. Copyright Rocket Lawyer Incorporated.Rocket Lawyer is an online legal technology company that makes the law simpler and more affordable for businesses, families and individuals. Reporters reviewed documents from local health departments, city code inspections, police reports and emails between tenants and landlords. It was established in collaboration with several longtime community organizers, including Shemaeka Shaw of Broken Hearted Homes Renters Association, Jasmine Harrisof the New Directions Tenants Union, Josh Poe and Jessica Bellamy of Root Cause Research Center,as well as the Party for Socialism and Liberation. Building-based tenants unions are generally made up of tenants who live in the same building and/or have the same landlord. And while they arent new, they have gained momentum in Connecticut over the past year, with at least five tenants unions having formed with the help of a group called Connecticut Tenants Union. They also conducted hours of interviews with tenants, reviewed photos and videos and visited apartments in person to confirm the conditions described. Tell us here. I cry because I dont want to sleep in my car again. The union is also working to propose a Tenants Bill of Rights a cohesive list of city ordinances that would better protect renters. You may need interpreters, translation tools, or a middle man if you have interpersonal conflicts with fellow tenants. It may not be a perfect process, but perfection is not needed. Another union has formed at the Seramonte Estates apartments in Hamden over the past few months. Ellis Act Evictions The "Ellis Act" is a state law which says that landlords have the unconditional right to evict tenants to "go out of business." The Organizing Team is the seed, usually 3-4 people, mostly tenants or residents who are fed up and ready to do something together. But Louisville Tenant Union, or LTU, one of a growing number of tenant-led community-wide organizations coming together to fight for renter rights and better housing, is here because of a less-publicized fact about the complex: Its owners have benefitted greatly from U.S. government assistance, while the tenants struggle with increased rents . Typical goals for tenant unions may include fixing problems in common areas, resolving individual tenant issues, establishing eviction protections, and minimizing rent increases. Step 3: GET TOGETHER: Hold your first building/complex/community Assembly. We fight gentrification so that tenants can remain in their longtime communities and support networks. We advance policy that is driven from tenant experience. Tenants Together/Homes For All tenant unions share a common vision and principles (see bottom), and unite with other tenant unions across our cities, states and country to build a movement of millions that is powerful enough to win rent control for all and tenant and community control of our housing and land. We are bringing tenants together across lines of race, class, gender, gender identity, orientation, ability, age, etc. It typically only changes how landlords communicate with tenants, resolve problems, and make changes to leases or the property. If we are to win the most transformative policy, we must center our movements around those most affected: low-income people of color. Right of first refusal, under which tenants would be offered the opportunity to purchase their home, should their landlord choose to sellit. When her family first moved there, they thought it would be a good place for her to grow up. Tenant unions have been successfully organized in various parts of the United States. I dont want to sleep outside. People have suffered too long with unsafe housing conditions, bad-faith landlords, infestations, black mold, and increasingly expensive rents. A tenants union is a group of tenants that educate others about their rights and responsibilities as renters. Get all the legal help you need to manage your property. RCW 59.18.130 outlines a tenant's responsibilities under landlord-tenant law. Anytime. First 3 steps to building a Tenants' Union: In each of our cities, our path to building organizations has been different, but weve learned from each other that there are certain steps that are important and helpful, regardless of the organizing model we choose to organize our communities. Reach reporter Thomas Birmingham @TBirmingham@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter @cthomasbirm. They often form when groups of tenants are concerned about rent increases or general living conditions. KY Tenants:Email kentuckytenants@gmail.com. Some leases have clauses about renewing the lease. We fight to build tenant power in order to end the immiseration of the poor and working classes that housing represents under capitalism and to contribute to the struggle to end capitalism itself. What landlords may find is that unions fight to make sure lease terms and standard tenant rights are enforced. Principles: Solidarity, Mutual Care, Transformation. Are you about to snap because of a pest infestation? Paul Buckowski/Times Union. Find out if your neighbors are dealing with the same issues as you. Organizing isnt just sending out an email or creating a social media page, although those will likely be steps that you take. Michigan law recognizes two types of tenant arrangements: at-will tenancies which are indefinite in duration and typically renewed on a month-to-month or week-to-week basis, and fixed-term. Youre finding mold everywhere. Their website has a PDF booklet outlining your rights, as well as several FAQ pages regarding specific aspects of your rights, for example: unsafe or unfit housing, types of rental agreements, evictions and COVID-19 specific rights. Indigenous communities bring cultural knowledge necessary to our movement regarding kinship, community, and our relationship to land and place. Within our unions we commit to learning how to deconstruct oppression and oppressive ways of working. If physical copies cannot be provided, or the technology to do so is not accessible, photographs of documents can be uploaded to a shared drive, a dropbox, or in an email chain. One significant way to do so is by forming a tenants union. Besides preventing evictions, increasing solidarity between tenants, and holding landlords accountable, tenants unions have successfully fought for and won relocation assistance, bans on one-way leases for month-to-month tenants, a formerly non-negotiable lease, and carrying out a rent strike. Her ceiling also leaked, according to emails she sent management over the course of weeks as early as February. Or you can meet in a public park. Some things to consider when planning your first meeting agenda are: PREPARATION: put an agenda together, identify a facilitator, let people know about the meeting in advance. Tenants are full political subjects who will not be liberated by secure housing alone. Your union may find that letter writing is not sufficient to meet your demands. Written and published by Legal Services of New Jersey Several other tenants said they too have been given notice to vacate the premises in recent months. For some tenants, understanding your rights may uncover violations that may have flown under the radar otherwise. But as time went on and the apartment was sold to a new company, Arba Equities, conditions deteriorated. She owed two months of rent, according to court documents. Have you noticed that your landlord is slow to respond to your maintenance requests? Yes, tenant unions are legal. [1] Groups may also lobby local officials to change housing policies or address homelessness. Thats all we want.. This is where note taking and mass communication become integral to pushing along your organization. Depending on the size of the building, you can opt to have representatives of certain tenants or entire floors. Once you have followed the 3 steps below and/or held your first assembly in your building, complex or community, lets check in! If its accessible to people, you can even host an online meeting: a Skype chat, a Zoom call, or a livestream. After your lease ends, you can keep living in the home if you and your landlord agree. This is a list of most of the tenants unions that we could find in the US. 7. We must organize because overcoming fear and isolation is impossible to do on our own. It promotes good tenant relations, and certainly enhanced tenant satisfaction leads to high tenant retention rates, she said. Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window), Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window), Many residents are having similar issues with maintenance and repairs, Curry said. This is a process and it takes time. Just calling a meeting of tenants and agreeing on collective action is all it takes. We empower tenants through education and organizing to protect their rights, preserve their homes, improve their living conditions and enhance the quality of life in their communities. You can negotiate a new lease or become a month-to-month tenant. Removing use of common areas or amenities. CT Mirror is a nonprofit newsroom. Provided by Laffer Gallery. This [a union] is a tool that people are using to fight back and its definitely growing and people have interest in it because there just arent that many other options unfortunately, said Joe Hermann, an organizer with Connecticut Tenants Union, who has worked with tenants at the Wedgewood Apartments. renters in a city who belong to a county or citywide local tenants' association. The organization of tenant unions are the building blocks to our translocal, statewide, and international movement. Complaints mention drafty windows, a problem with a smoke detector, mold, appliances that dont function and rat feces. Representatives for the company didnt return requests for comment for this story, and union members say they havent heard back from the company about their demands. In the short-term,the union has pushed for the Louisville Metro Housing Authority, which runsthe city's public housing system, to end its contracts with The CT Group, a private company that manages hundreds of units at Liberty Green and Sheppard Square. Neighborhood and city-based tenant unions are networks of tenants who often have similar issues and stand in solidarity with each other, but may live in different buildings or have different landlords. [1] Groups may also lobby local officials to change housing policies or address homelessness. How did we get here/Roots of the Housing Crisis, The current crisis we are facing didnt come out of nowhere: it is a result of intentional, racist and classist housing policy dating back to the New Deal era and even colonial times. We strive to adhere to an internationalist and anti-imperialist orientation in words and deeds. Believe it or not, tenants are close to half of the population of the state of California, 17 million and counting. This means those now living under month-to-month leases or no lease at all areeasier to kick out of their homes, according to a letter the union sent to management. And just-cause evictions, which limit when and how landlords can evict tenants. Completely outrageous that the city allows these landlords to violate the law and take hundreds of low-income units away for use as tourist hotels. This article contains general legal information and does not contain legal advice. Many of the steps are not something we do and then move on from, they are steps we strive to weave into everything we do. Government support state, federal or local is integral to the success of a tenants union, said Bridgett Simmons, a staff attorney at the National Housing Law Project. We basically are just asking to be treated like human beings, like residents of the property, said Rachel Massaro, one of the Seramonte residents and a union member. LOUISVILLE, Ky. A newly formed tenants union that wants to improve rights for Louisville's renters is already catching attention from landlords, residentsand elected officials, as rental rates continue to rise citywide.