Despite significant opposition from the self storage industry, the Los Angeles City Council passed an ordinance requiring self storage owners to defer rent if a tenant is unable to pay for a COVID-related reason and provides documentation to the owner no later than seven days after the rent is due. The deferral lasts until three months after the local emergency period. The ordinance also prohibits late fees on deferred rent and requires that owners provide notice of the ordinance to their tenants.
We expect the Mayor to sign this ordinance soon.
CSSA strongly encourage you to consult with legal counsel before proceeding with lockouts or lien sales in the City of Los Angeles.
Additional Moratoriums & Restrictions
In addition to the new Los Angeles Ordinance, we know of three other cities that have moratoriums or restrictions:
New ordinances are being drafted each week. We strongly encourage you to check with both your city and county HERE to see if any such ordinance or moratorium has been passed that would restrict you from lien process, late fees, or imposes repayment timelines.
CSSA is working closely with SSA to track these ordinances as they arise and attempt to make our case for exempting self storage or challenging the validity with regards to the Self Storage Act. Current sentiment still remains in favor of those tenants who have been financially affected by the Covid-19 restrictions.
For more information and updates on Covid-19 restrictions and various articles for help in managing your business during these challenging times, please follow the information on the CSSA website CORONAVIRUS INFORMATION.
