Frequently Asked Questions
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Measure CC, known as the Berkeley Rent Relief and Homeowners Protection Act, is a city-wide ballot initiative designed to encourage small property owners to rent out their secondary units. It also aims to establish a dedicated rent relief fund to assist tenants facing emergencies that may make it difficult for them to cover rent for that month.
Measure CC relaxes rent regulations for owner-occupied two-unit properties and single-family homes. Under this measure, if an owner and tenant agree on a fixed lease term, the tenant would be required to vacate once the term ends if the owner needs the unit for personal use. This increased flexibility for small property owners aims to make more rental units available. These smaller units often meet the housing needs of a diverse range of individuals, including teachers, firefighters, and those just beginning their careers in the Bay Area.
A basic component of housing affordability is simple economics. The more product you have available to meet demands of the market, the more likely the price will drop. When thousands of people are fighting for a finite number of units, rental prices will spike up to meet that demand. When there is a proliferation of housing brought to the market ,rental prices will go down. Rents in Berkeley have dropped significantly since the addition of 1,728 new units to Berkeley since 2022. However, many of those units are not considered "affordable" and Berkeley needs to continue to add units that are more affordable.
In California a new unit of housing costs upwards of $1m each. Most investors cannot afford to build a unit for $1m and then offer it for a considerably lower price than the market would bear. That's why new units in California do not have any rent control for the first 15 years of their existence.
However, existing units (many of which were built decades ago) can be brought to the market with little to no cost, which allows the owner to offer the unit at a lower rent than a brand new unit.
Regardless, supply is important and we need more of it!
Measure CC instructs the city to set aside revenue from the city's rental business tax for a dedicated rent relief fund. The tax is paid for by large rental property owners and is a tax on their gross receipts. The fund would generate an estimated $1.2m annually and would be solely dedicated to helping tenants pay rent when they have a financial emergency.
During the pandemic, the city allocated over $1 million for rent relief, anticipating that many tenants would struggle to pay their rent. As a result, an estimated 1,000 families were able to remain in their homes despite falling behind on payments. In most cases, the rent was paid directly to property owners, ensuring both the landlords were compensated and tenants could stay housed. This rental assistance likely prevented many families from facing homelessness.
The problem is that the city ran out of funds, despite the growing demand for rental assistance. Many tenants are just one car breakdown or unexpected medical bill away from being unable to pay rent. If there were a resource available to provide financial help during these emergencies, we could better prevent housing instability and keep more people in their homes.
No! The good news is, the money will be drawn from an existing tax levied on Berkeley's large rental property owners (called Measure U1). The Business License Tax is an annual tax rental housing providers of over 5 units must pay to the city. It takes the gross receipts of all rental income. Measure CC proposes that 20% of that money be set aside in a fund that is specifically for rent relief.
No. Currently the city takes in the Business License Tax money (aka U1 Funds) and puts it directly to the city's General Fund. From there, the City Council may decide where that money goes. Often the money will be put towards affordable housing or homelessness prevention. However, after more than 8 years of this tax, very little affordable housing has been built and the homelessness problem does not seem to be getting better.
During the pandemic, City Council did direct $1m worth of Measure U1 funds towards a specific rent relief fund. It also raised personal donations from Berkeley citizens to add to the fund. That fund helped to keep almost 1,000 residents in Berkeley housed when they couldn't pay rent. Unfortunately, the money ran out quickly and was not replenished. The Eviction Defense Center does administrate on a small Housing Retention Fund, however it runs out of money regularly and there is no dedicated source of funding for it.
That is not true. Measure CC was written specifically to protect current tenants in owner-occupied two units properties. If they currently have rent control under local law, they will continue to have rent control and tenant protections for the life of their tenancy. If Measure CC passes, any new tenancies created after November 5, 2024, where it's an owner-occupied two unit parcel, will not have rent control.
You view the redlined proposed legislation by clicking here. If you would like to read the City Attorney's impartial analysis, click here.
Yes, there is a competing ballot measure put on by the city of Berkeley (specifically authored by Mayor Jesse Arreguin and Mayoral Candidate and Councilmember Sophie Hahn) called Measure BB. There are components of both Measure BB and Measure CC that are similar and there are components that are very different. If you'd like to see a comparison between the two, click here.
Measure CC is sponsored and supported by small rental housing providers who own 2 units or less. They are your friend, your neighbor, your kid's teacher who own secondary units, likely in your neighborhood. They belong to the Berkeley Property Owners Association, an organization specifically by and for owners who self manage their properties and/or live on site with their tenant. The proponent of this measure is a duplex owner.
Paid for by Yes on Measure CC/No on Measure BB
Sponsored by Coalition of Concerned Housing Providers, FPPC #13795546
Major Funding Provided by National Association of Realtors (Chicago, IL $195,000)
California Association of Realtors (Los Angeles, CA $40,000)
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