"Strong Public Opposition" is a misleading headline and feels intentionally slanted.
A slew of experts armed with data have presented a compelling case at city council meetings. The opposition, comprised of local landlords who see regulation and code enforcement as a threat to their profits, are dragging out the same magical arguments they did during the Missing Middle campaign. That fact is that rental registries already exist in cities across the country, including Raleigh, Seattle, Minneapolis, eight cities in California, and at least 20 in Texas, and more.
Rental registries don't just help tenants dealing with slumlords who don't keep their units up to code. Knowing who owns what also helps mom and pop landlords. Understanding who small owners are—including their race, their rental portfolios, the demographics of the neighborhoods where they live, operate, and own rentals—is a key step in creating policies to equitably serve them. Home ownership is one of the key factors for building generational wealth, and there is a 30% homeownership gap between white and Black households- and a greater gap in rental property ownership.
I'd ask my neighbors to look at the facts and the data. It all points to rental registries helping to address slumlords, giving tenants more protections, and will arm us with the data we need and don't have to help address inequality in our city. This is progress that we need.
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