Landlords should not play nice. these poor people should not love Ian a wealthy place known as Silicon Valley. When the rents goes high, only us, rich people will remain. No more poverty. Now shoo, low - income families.

Six of the 7 members of the City Council as well as recent Councilmembers including Margaret Abe-Koga have posted disguised landlord endorsements (such as the "Mountain View Housing Council") on their campaign websites. Landlord groups do not endorse candidates open to any form of rent control. Apart from Assembly candidate Kasperzak's proposal, the most the current City Council might do is non-binding rent mediation in effect in Campbell.

Long term answer - the peninsula needs to build a lot of housing. Short term answer - peninsula cities all need to take action to require every landlord to be a good, reasonable landlord. Asking will not be enough. In the short term there will be many commuters because there is not enough housing. Housing will continue to be very expensive because there is not enough housing. But at least responsible city councils can take action to stabilize rents and stop the insane turmoil that frequent large rent increases are causing. Don't worry - landlords will still make a high return on their investment.

The landlords are not going to lower rents any time soon. Those huge new complexes that city council has approved to help alleviate the housing crisis are making things worst. 2 bedroom apartments are going for over 4000 a month in those new buildings. The existing landlords like Sobrato (Prometheus) and others are heartless going after the jugular when it comes to the non techie family that is just trying to survive. They see the money the new building get and raise the rents like crazy. We have 4 people in our family - all doing service (retail) jobs at minimum wage and almost every cent goes to rent. Last month when it was time for lease renewal they not only raised the rent by over 500 but added other charges like Maintence fees 200 per month, utilities 150 per month, pet rent 50 per pet per month and their private rental insurance 125 per month.
We have lived here all our lives.... Now we are leaving the valley. There is nothing affordable here for us.
Mountain View used to be an awesome place to live, it breaks my heart to leave. The rich Google people and others do not give a damm about people, that money buys a lifestyle that gets flaunted in the face of people who struggle just to survive. Look outside your window folks, this place sucks for the rest of us and you do not even care.

If the city is already considering publishing which landlords join a "fair rental-practice program," why not then consider requiring landowners to report to the city the percentages (percents, not rent in dollars) of their annual rent increases, and then invite online apartment search sites and this paper to publish those percentages. A company like Prometheus, which owns several Mountain View properties, has the right to exorbitantly increase rent, but it should also have to live with the possible future impact on its reputation with future renters and the community at large. Properly informing consumers of who they are dealing with ensures a free market as much as unregulated prices, and rewards landowners who are just. It is both capitalistic and easy to ensure consumers (renters) have the same level of information to make decisions as landowners do. It's how the stock market remains fair.

Price, location and condition of the apartment is going to dictate where people want to live. Not that it is on some list.

Really need rent control and/or affordable housing units.

Broken door,no heater, 2 washer and dryer dirty pool crappy paint job, ripped screen all at av whopping 2,300.00 a month in Mountain View. No one complains for fear of a rent hike again!!

Asking people to play nice doesn't work. Rent control only works for existing tenants, and makes things more expensive for newcomers. You can't legislate your way out of high rents in a housing shortage, you can only do it by reducing the shortage. Naturally, existing home owners will fight this tooth and nail because they've got their foot in the door and don't care about prices anymore, and they don't want their city to ever change.

Can someone please explain to me why Prometheus has such sway over Mountain View City Council? It's really beginning to concern me, the more I look into the yelp reviews for their various properties, the high rents they charge, etc. They are not accountable to anything or anyone, and the amount of real estate they own in Mountain View is almost frightening.

Why does the city gleefully shoots down proposals by the tech companies but allow Prometheus to build monster apartment complexes with no community benefits, nowhere near adequate parking, and not following the rules others are subjected to? I have contacted the city many times about the Moffett Project and get radio silence...

"council won't tolerate people taking advantage of the market." Ok, so if the market goes south, will the city make up the landlords losses? I highly doubt it. The city needs to let the economy work, since it adjusts for higher and lower prices.

"We have 4 people in our family - all doing service (retail) jobs at minimum wage" Why doesn't one of the 4 go to school and better themselves and your family? There are bunch of retail jobs in other cities/states. One doesn't have to suffer to live, there are always other solutions.

Lots of states out there without Income tax, Nevada is one.

A landlord shouldn't be allowed to maximize the profit on his investment and a potential tenant who could and would be willing to pay the market price should be denied the opportunity to the rent the property all in order to subsidize the housing of an existing tenant. I suppose that could be called "fair" by some definition of the word "fair"

Rents are simply what people are willing to pay. If you're willing to pay $8,600 / month for a three bedroom house then that's what you'll be charged. Fortunately that's not the case for us who are gifted with reasonable landlords.

That being said there is a massive amount of housing being built. It's supply and demand and the supply is being increased tenfold. Meanwhile more and more apartments are becoming available. Theoretically the more vacancies the lower the rents will be. That's assuming that the owners of these huge complexes would prefer to leave vacancies and "write off" losses.

I suspect that rents will begin to come down in the very near future.

@Debbie I'm sorry that you have to move; however, Mountain View has changed and for the better, and your comments do seem a little like sour grapes.

I hear many people talk about the good old days. I'm not quite sure what they are talking about. When I first moved to Mountain View in the mid-1990s, Castro street was a dismal place that attracted few people, and crime was much higher in the city. It was not common for people to make Mountain View a destination preferring instead towns such as Palo Alto for dining and entertainment. I actually suggest talking to some MVPD veterans from the 1980s and they can tell you how rough and ready this town used to be.

It is thanks to the influx of companies such as Google, LinkedIn, etc.. that attract highly skilled and paid workers into the area that has literally transformed this city into the vibrant and attractive place that it has become. Just look at the diversity of restaurants and entertainment on Casto street and it is hard to believe how forlorn it was not too many years ago.

Unfortunately, progress means change, and in our case this means that folks who do not have the skill set to make the requisite income to live here are displaced as prices increases. That's just a fact of life, and it is not exclusive to Mountain View, California, or even the United States.

Some of these "rich people" comments disgust me. Who are you to determine who and what is rich and poor? Making statements about people going to college? Many around here do go to school and make decent money. One of the biggest problems is the landlords and their lack of accountability. For example a landlord who does ZERO maintenance on a property and makes a $1000/month increase. Yeah i dont think so. 9 years in the same place and not a single thing done including no carpet replacement or painting. Greed is a huge or problem for landlords who do nothing to keep their properties up to standards like they are required to.

Whenever a liberal politician talks about "compassion" or "fairness", put your hand on you wallet and hold it really hard. They're getting set to pick your pocket. Instead, we should be asking our ultra-lib and economically-challenged City Council to "play nice" and not interfere with the "invisible hand" of free markets in the MV rental markets. The MV City Council has allowed too much unchecked commercial development. History teaches that rent control is poisonous to rental housing and, in the long run, cities are far better off if the do not adopt it. Sheee! There are so many economically ignorant fools in MV!

"There are so many economically ignorant fools in MV!"

But enough about you...

You can debate the pros and cons of rent control all you want-- I have opinions but they aren't relevant to this

Steve Nelson, Ken Rosenberg, Mike Kasperzak. Mountain View gets the comically bad, naïve "leadership" we deserve. Kasperzak's naiveté in this is just mind blowing (right up there w/ Rosenberg's love affair with the VTA). I would rather see something controversial-- like rent control-- presented, with the benefits and downsides discussed and concrete action taken than for our clueless "leadership" to throw this sort of silliness around.

There is a lot of ignorance here in this city. People think that adding units will lead to lower rents. Supply and Demand. Increase supply to meet demand and prices will lower. There is truth in it, but like all rules, formulas and theories, you have to plug in the right data into the right variables.

The problem with this thinking here in MV is that the Demand so greatly outpaces Supply that in order to significantly meet Demand, the city will need to approve many thousands of units in the next few years. This would destroy the beauty and livability of the city and turn it into a paved-over work ghetto.

In my opinion and I hope in the opinion of other homeowners, our desire is not to simply increase the monetary value of our own property, but to live here long term--perhaps the rest of our lives!

First step is to get some council members that are interested in keeping MV livable (and not just minimally livable). Because councils come and go, we then need laws on the books that will protect our city. The ones we have now are primarily safety-related. The livability ones are too easily thrown under the bus by granting exceptions.

Let's take our city back!

NHN is a local non profit service provider for basic need and housing. We can help with life's challenges from food, housing, landlord-tenant issues to connecting you with the right programs & services that fit your needs.

NHN primarily serve middle income households who too often do not qualify for 'safety net' programs because of their income. NHN has no income requirement. All programs and services are free.
If you know of anyone who needs extra support Basic Needs-Jobs-Housing, NHN is happy to help. Contact Us:

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​We may not have all the solutions. NHN will do our best to fill the gaps.


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Striving to keep our middle to low income neighbors stable & thriving.

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Ask for "Relocation Packet". Best possible outcomes happen when you go prepared. Complete 'NHN Relocation Package'
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HI ALL, there is are two forums that people can go to for continued discussions on these topics.

1. If your are a renter,
NHN is kicking off, "Bay Area Renter's Forum' 🌋🎉🎈 Web Link
This is a forum by renters for renters. Check it out. Start a topic. Renters only, please. Renters from MV and other Peninsula cities will weigh in. Or share their concerns, challenges, blessings or information...
Neighbors Helping Neighbors is compiling the data that will be tabulated from the following surveys to assist Peninsula cities alleviate the "imbalance" in the private rental market. Surveys for renters are accessed through the forum.

2. The Campaign for a Balanced Mountain View was formed in March, 2014 as an educational campaign organized to promote not only a better balance between jobs and housing in Mountain View, but also to sustain the economic, ethnic, and cultural diversity of our community.
To join our discussion list, which includes links to relevant news articles, go to:
Web Link">Web Link
or write LSiegel@cpeo.org. All subscribers will be also be added to the announcement-only list.
To join only our announcement-only list, go to:
Web Link">Web Link
or write LSiegel@cpeo.org

Two very good sources of information, like minded people and place to share your thoughts.

The Law of Supply and Demand along with NATURAL Laws always beat Man's attempt to get around them. Face it, MV is as built-out as Palo Alto.

@Steve
I didn't live in Mtn. View in the 1980's but I had a girlfriend that rented a house on Latham St. near downtown. Castro St. was sleepy then, for example the pet shop and stationary store closed at 5PM. Castro Street was not a dangerous place, MVPD has always done a excellent job.

Yes, there were more exciting places than Castro Street. We used to drive up to the City on a weeknight to see a movie after getting off work. We'd end the evening at a North Beach cafe and get home in time to get a full night's rest. Good luck doing that in today's traffic.

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[Post removed due to disrespectful comment or personal attack]

Who gets to decide how much profit is enough for a property owner?

.....and do the rest of us get a say in determining your compensation for work and investments in return?

After 20 years as a renter in Mt. View my time is up. Despite the sometimes good intentions to illuminate the problem, there is no solution to the problem other than the mono-culture over-paid tech. Jobs have segregated our society. for you who are willing to pay - please do not kick the down and out.

Rent increases were discussed again last night at the City Council meeting. Lots of folks spoke about rents under "oral communications" concerning matters not on the agenda.

There was also a late agenda item sponsored by Councilmember (and Assembly candidate) Mike Kasperzak concerning a voluntary "fair rent practices" program that only good landlords would join. As Councilmember Lenny Siegel pointed out, it is the other landlords, the more greedy ones, that would need to be curbed to save renters from sky-high rent increases and ouster.

I gave the City Council a two-page summary of the City of Campbell's landlord-tenant mediation program. In Campbell, mediation is mandatory for owners or operators of rental units of at least 4 (four-plex and above). It is optional for other landlord-tenant disputes.

After midnight, the City Council referred Mr. Kasperzak's proposal to staff for further information to be presented at an already-set study session on October 19.

While I think Mr. Kasperzak's weak proposal stems from his admitted political alliance with landlords and his opposition to any form of rent control, I must give him credit for proposing something. The other five members of the City Council endorsed as candidates by landlord groups have not even acknowledged the endorsements (on their own campaign websites) at a City Council meeting. Look for "Housing Council" and "Tri-county Apartment Association."

Only Councilmember Lenny Siegel was not endorsed by a landlord group. And landlord groups do not endorse anyone not firmly opposed to rent control.

So, if rent control is off the table, mediation (with protection against eviction for having sought mediation) is the most residents might hope to get from this City Council.