In the last decade, real estate development and gentrification have swept over the city’s eastside. Other areas, relatively untouched, may soon see housing density slowly increase as a result of recent legislation.
Category: Housing
Posted inHousing, Land use, Law & Justice, Public Safety, Renters vs. Veritas
Complaints and Citations Rise Sharply at Veritas Apartments Cited in Lawsuit
An analysis of public records for more than three dozen buildings involved in a tenant lawsuit against Veritas Investments Inc. shows the number of reported problems and citations rose sharply after the giant landlord acquired the properties. These buildings also received a record number of violation notices.
Posted inHousing, Law & Justice, Renters vs. Veritas
Sued by Tenants, Veritas Says it Maintains ‘High Standards’
I n reporting on the tenant lawsuit against Veritas Investments Inc., the Public Press engaged company spokesman Ron Heckmann at length. Here are excerpts of some of our questions and his responses.
Posted inHousing, Land use, Law & Justice, Renters vs. Veritas
Searching for Truth in Tenants’ Lawsuit Against S.F. Corporate Landlord
More than 100 tenants in 39 rent-controlled apartment buildings have sued the owner, Veritas Investment Inc., for behavior they allege is designed to push them out in favor of new, higher-paying residents. The $3 billion company denies the charges, alleging the lawsuit is a money grab.
Posted inAging, Homelessness, Housing
Counting the City’s Homeless: A First-Hand Account From the Streets
Point-in-Time counts are “snapshots” of a city’s homeless population, relying on volunteers’ perceptions of homelessness. As such, the surveys are prone to error. They also fail to gather specifics about age and ethnicity, and don’t provide a full picture of the most vulnerable growing populations: infants and the elderly.
Posted inCity Hall, Elections, Fall 2018 Election, Health, Homelessness, Housing, Labor, News, Technology
Prop. C Math Shows Potentially Greater Homelessness Benefit Than City Projects
A Public Press examination of calculations that went into projections of homeless people helped versus jobs or companies lost from a tax increase offers a clearer picture of Proposition C’s potential impacts and the limitations of trying to accurately quantify the effects of the measure — if it withstands legal scrutiny.
Posted inBay Area Smart Growth, Elections, Fall 2018 Election, Homelessness, Housing, Land use
Rent Control Boosters and Bashers Both Base Claims on Incomplete Research
As Californians battle this fall over a ballot measure to allow cities much wider leeway to impose all sorts of rent control, both sides of the debate throw around citations to academic papers, economic studies and seemingly compelling statistics. But a review of the available research shows that both sides are wrong.
Posted inElections, Fall 2018 Election, Health, Housing, Land use, Law & Justice, Renters vs. Veritas
S.F.’s Largest Landlord Sued Over Alleged Efforts to Push Out Tenants
Veritas Investments owns nearly 200 buildings in the city. It’s been a target for tenant advocates, who accuse the company of building a business model that relies on pushing tenants out of rent-controlled units so they can be re-rented for much more. Veritas disputes the accusations that is “hostile or negligent” toward tenants.
Posted inCity Hall, Elections, Environment, Housing, News
Mapping S.F. City Hall’s Political Divide Through Data
When media outlets and pundits have argued that San Francisco officials were politically progressive or moderate, it mostly was based on observation and conjecture. But now, such assertions are buttressed with data. We show you who’s which at City Hall.
Posted inElections, Housing, Law & Justice, Remaking Rent Control
Voters OK’d Legal Aid for Tenants Facing Eviction — Now Comes the Hard Part
Over the past year, with housing still expensive and scarce, more than 1,600 San Francisco tenants have received eviction notices. On June 5, city voters made history, guaranteeing legal help to anyone facing eviction, regardless of income. San Francisco has until July 2019 to set up multimillion-dollar program under Proposition F.