Temporary Rent Freeze

UPDATE San Rafael, Novato & County:  On January 19th, the City of San Rafael City Council adopted a temporary “rent freeze” ordinance for tenants residing in certain residential units through December 31, 2021. The temporary moratorium solely applies in two designated US Census Tracts, Tract Nos. 1122.01 (Canal Neighborhood) and 1122.02 (Southeast San Rafael and Canal neighborhood), which have been most disproportionally impacted by COVID-19 and have the greatest level of housing instability. On January 26, the City of Novato followed suit, designating three tracts for a similar rent freeze.  Finally, the Marin County Board of Supervisors enacted a rent freeze for Marin City and a portion of West Marin at its February 9 meeting. The criteria for selecting these census tracts or neighborhoods included significant housing overcrowding and high COVID-19 positivity rates. Other Marin towns and cities are considering whether they should also enact these protections. Photo:  Marin IJ

Here is MEHC’s comment to San Rafael City Council for reference.