Santa Clarita Council Refuses to Regulate Mobile Home Rents

The Santa Clarita City Council, turning down a request from residents of mobile home parks, has declined to enact an ordinance that would have placed a limit on rents at 22 parks in the city.

But council members warned the owners of mobile home parks that they might consider such an ordinance in the future if rents begin to skyrocket. “They start jacking up rents, I’ll be willing to come down real hard,” Councilman Carl Boyer III said Tuesday night.

For now, the council will organize a meeting between residents and owners of mobile home parks to discuss what residents say are exorbitant rent increases at many parks. Council members said they would rather see the residents and owners work out the problem themselves with some city assistance.

The Santa Clarita Mobile Home Owners Area Council had asked the council to adopt an ordinance, patterned after a measure in Oceanside in San Diego County, that would have outlawed annual rent increases above 8%. Under the proposal, mobile home park owners could receive permission for larger increases under special circumstances.

Don Wilder, president of the mobile home group, said the ordinance would allow park owners a fair return on their investment while protecting park tenants.

Wilder said there are 22 mobile home parks with 2,200 spaces in Santa Clarita. More than 7,500 people live in the parks, he said, paying rents ranging from $300 to $473 a month.

Over the past five years, rents have risen dramatically, Wilder said. Some mobile home park owners raise rents 15% a year, he said. Most park residents are senior citizens on fixed incomes, and many fear they will be forced out of their homes by rising rents, Wilder said.

“Their desire for affordable living has been jeopardized,” he said.

The council said it needs detailed information on rents at mobile home parks before it can act on an ordinance. But council members agreed that many park residents are having trouble paying their monthly rent.

“The problem is not getting any better,” Councilwoman Jo Anne Darcy said. “It’s getting to an unbearable point.”

Boyer said the council receives more mail complaining about rents at mobile home parks than any other issue.

Councilman Dennis Koontz suggested that the city write to each park owner and request that they hold off raising rents until city officials can investigate the issue.

“They’ll tell you to take a walk,” Darcy replied.