SAR's News You Can Use

Despite Prop 10 failing this November, leaving the Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act to stay, the fight to prevent rent control in Sacramento remains. Rent control continues to be an active topic of discussion and possible policy to be voted on in 2020, as the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) has drafted an initiative establishing rent control in Sacramento. This proposal would create an elected Rent Stabilization Board with no limit on the amount of money those elected can earn on said board and no limit on campaign contributions they can accept during their campaigning for these positions.

Their primary purpose would be to oversee that this measure be properly implemented, as well as establish regulations and determine allowable annual rent adjustment. However, the first rent board will set unlimited fees on landlords in order to fund the board’s operating expenses.

An exciting win for home sales as Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) had reversed their original ruling a few days later to discontinue the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) as the government continued to be shut down. Last month FEMA made a surprise ruling which disallowed new and renewal flood insurance policies during the government shutdown, despite Congress having already voted to renew the flood insurance policies as they have done during past shutdowns. This had potential to be detrimental across the nation, and specifically in the Sacramento area, where approximately 121,000 homeowners are encouraged or required to have flood insurance for their homes. When selling and buying homes, any home in a flood zone is required to have flood insurance in order to get a mortgage or to close on said home, and without policies available by the NFIP, no buying or selling in flood zones could have been possible during this shutdown.

The Internal Revenue Service, along with the National Treasury, ruled in mid-January that they would allow real estate professionals to benefit from the Section 199A 20 percent pass-through deduction. It had been unclear to real estate professionals what the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act would do for them come tax season, but after the ruling on January 18th, the IRS and the Treasury issued final regulations regarding the new 20 percent deduction on qualified business income. NAR had expressed concerns through ongoing discussions with the IRS and the Treasury, and they were heard.

The Mayor of Sacramento, Darrell Steinberg, and Mayor of West Sacramento, Christopher Cabaldon, have teamed up and formed the Mayor’s Commission on Climate Change. This commission was created to develop common goals and strategies for both cities to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and to make suggestions as to what they would like to see in terms of environmental policy in the near future. Their overall goal is to reach Carbon Zero, or zero carbon emissions, by 2045.