RULING, from page 1 ‘Shack’ owner wins case
By Daily Press staff report
Daily Press staff report
Santa Monica’s Rent Control Board will continue charging landlords a registration fee for unrented units, even in the face of a judge’s ruling that such a requirement is improper.
The $132 annual fee helps operate the board, and is charged to landlords of all units on the rent control list whether rented or not. It is normally passed on to tenants who pay an additional $11 per month.
But Donna Groman, a small claims commissioner, ruled against its use in a case in which a leading landlord rights lawyer was being sued for more than $1,000 in such fees, which come with an interest penalty of 60 percent a year. She held that a “controlled residential rental unit” in the Santa Monica law had to be actually rented in order to make it liable for the fee.
A small claims ruling holds only in the case for which it is handed down, although it may be cited by others in similar straits. The board’s declaration probably has little effect on other landlords, since most property owners withdraw non-rented units from rent control, which is possible by pledging not to rent them. An earlier requirement that they may be occupied only by the owner or relatives no longer applies, said board attorney Keith Kresge.
“This unexplained ruling really has no effect on our ability to charge the fee,” Kresge maintained.
Small claims cases may have written rulings, but in practice they normally lack them. So Commissioner Groman simply ruled for Gitlen without explanation. However, she indicated informally that hers was a “statutory interpretation.” Other landlords who sought to escape the fee for unrented units could point to the ruling in search of added weight, although a future commissioner would be under no obligation to agree.
The Gitlen case was unusual, since he couldn’t explain why he let the fees pile up for so long. He guessed that his law office had automatically paid the fees for a time until he stopped paying without going through the process of taking the unit off the rolls.
Kresge pointed out that while a 60 percent annual late fee appears steep, it is legal. He said it is meant as a stiff deterrent to those who’d otherwise avoid paying it.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on January 10, 2003. Read the original PDF.