On Tuesday, April 21, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors unanimously approved an emergency ordinance to temporarily prohibit rent increases on tenants during the covid-19 pandemic. The ordinance applies to rent increases that would normally have been allowed by the San Francisco Rent Ordinance. The ordinance does not apply to rental units whose rents are not controlled by Section 37.3 of the San Francisco Rent Ordinance. The ordinance will be retroactive to April 7, 2020. This means that any rent increase imposed on or after April 7 will be prohibited during the moratorium, even if the rent increase was allowed at the time.
The ordinance does not affect the tenant’s anniversary date for imposing rent increases. After the moratorium ends, the landlord’s right to impose rent increases immediately resumes.
The ordinance will become effective immediately upon enactment. It will expire on the 61st day following enactment unless reenacted.
A copy of the ordinance can be found here.
UPDATE: The Mayor signed the ordinance into law. The signed ordinance can be found here.
The San Francisco Rent Board has a helpful summary here.
