Sheehe

BACKGROUND

I. Statutory background

The Ellis Act mandates that no public entity “shall . . . compel the owner of any residential real property to offer, or to continue to offer, accommodations in the property for rent or lease . . . .” (Gov. Code, § 7060, subd. (a).) To prevent landlords from using the Ellis Act to avoid rent control laws that restrict when a landlord can evict tenants, the statute mandates various penalties in the event landlords return their property to the rental market after having sent an Ellis notice to their tenants. One such penalty is requiring landlords to provide prior tenants the right of first refusal to re-rent the tenants’ prior units at rent-controlled prices. (Gov. Code, § 7060.2.) The City’s West Hollywood Municipal Code section 17.52.010 (MC 17.52.010) imposes the same penalties outlined in the Ellis Act. West Hollywood Municipal Code section 17.52.030 (MC 17.52.030) further mandates: “A landlord shall not endeavor to recover possession of a rental unit unless at least one of the grounds enumerated in Section 17.52.010 is the landlord’s dominant motive for recovering possession.” MC 17.52.010 permits the following as a ground for a…