Landlords' burden
By Edward K. Lortz, San Francisco

June 25, 2008

Editor (SF Chronicle) — I was very disappointed when I read-the article on the "Exodus of S.F.'s middle class" in the Sunday Chronicle.

Of all the "experts" quoted for the sideline, no one even mentioned what I believe to be one of the most signif­icant problems in the San Francisco rental market today.

I can stand on my corner on Potre­ro Hill and look one football-field length down four streets, about 30 buildings in all. I know my neighbors, and I can count six vacant apartments in those two- and three-unit buildings. They are "a relative's city crash pad," "home office," or just plain vacant, and have been for years. This trans­lates to thousands of empty units throughout the city.

Rent control on buildings four units and fewer has been an unmiti­gated disaster for the rental market. We have owned our building for 23 years, had the same tenant for the last 11, and have not even raised the rent the allowable amount. But it is a chore to keep up with all the rules, and if I was not an engineer and administra­tor, I could very easily turn our rental unit into a big home office and be done with the hassles. There has to be a compromise to protect tenants but still ease the burden on small land­lords.