It is the Mountain View Tenants Coalition and Mayor Lenny Siegel's fault for what is happening. You wanted rent control, you got it, and this is what you get. Next time do not listen to people who talk about redistribution of someone's else's money.They do not know Jack.

Our know nothing leader Siegel wants sysmic retrofit to these older buildings, ain't going to happen folks. You can not force an owner to stay in business without major lawsuit's to the city.

If you want these older buildings to stay around, repeal the rent control measure and find a way to subsidize the low income people, perhaps a .01 sales tax increase.

Anyone who tries to defend rent control with all it's failures, is a fool.

You where all told what would happen if Measure V passed. Now live with the consequences.

I can not believe the nerve that the mayor has. It is bad enough that these property owners had their rights taken away from them, but now the mayor wants to prevent a business owner from going out of business? The nerve of him. He is more than welcome to buy those properties and do as he wants to them.

Any and all businesses has a right to go out of business and if the mayor wants to stop that then he needs to be removed from office this November. Vote him out.

The landlords' associations really know to pick their trolls, don't they?

“Mountain View is going to be another rich enclave like Atherton”
Why is it a bad thing?

“'Mountain View is going to be another rich enclave like Atherton'
Why is it a bad thing?"

You landlord trolls just don't know when to stop, do you now?

Of course, none of you characters actually *live* in Mountain View, so you have no clue...

Here is the plan for those "of you characters who actually *live* in Mountain View, so you should have a clue..."


You take Mayor Siegel's house in Old Mtn.View and sell it.

You take the $2 million dollars from the sale and use it as a down payment to buy one of the apartment houses.

You get all the apartment residents to pool their incomes, money, etc, and get a loan and buy the property. Of course Lenny and his wife will get a 1 bedroom apartment at the property.

Everyone gets to stay at the apartment, a win win for everyone.
Then you repeat with another millionaire's house who supports rent control.

Of course this only works if your rules that you put on other people, also apply to you.

Put your money where your mouth is.

The landlords and landlord shills are too funny. They got into the business eager to easily squeeze every last penny out of working people, then cry about how oppressed they are when the people decided to take their futures back from the wealthy. Now they might have to get a real job like a peasant! The horror!

The American Dream....to depend on a lottery for housing? Sorry, that's NOT the American Dream. Let's step back and take a look at history here, what was the American Dream? Pioneers didn't sit there on the East Coast and say " I can't afford it here, someone needs to subsidize me". They made tough choices and took on incredibly rough voyages to find better chances. Many of them died. Many of them ended up in even worse living conditions. People lived through blizzards, droughts and unbelievable conditions all in the hopes of finding a better life.

To infer playing the lottery for housing is the American Dream is insulting to their fortitude and efforts. Honestly, this is what is wrong today.

mvresident2003, your posting here makes it clear you're precisely what's wrong today: someone who only looks out for #1. Such bitterness and disdain for others, typical of many in your generation.

"The landlords and landlord shills are too funny. They got into the business eager to easily squeeze every last penny out of working people"

In this OP it states that a tenant pays about $1,100 in rent,she also expects to pay at least double that to stay in Mountain View.

There was another story in the Voice where a landlord went thru the petition process asking to raise the rent on a tenant that pays $1,050, he was denied by the city for any increase.

Your accusations of landlords "wanting to squeeze every last penny out of working people" sure looks like you do not know what you are talking about. There are sure a lot of penny's left there for the tenants that the landlord could have took, but did not.

By the way, do you own a house? Condo? If yes, let's talk.

What new service had that landlord started to provide when they wanted to raise their rents? What fresh new labor had they performed, or was it just that nothing had changed except that other workers were producing so much that Mountain View was even more economically vibrant? Wanting to raise rents when you haven't done anything sounds to me like they're only interested in squeezing from the workers.

I'd like you to enlighten me on the moral calculus of whether I own or rent a house, townhouse, condo, granny flat, or whatever. Please delineate when people can be considered full citizens of Mountain View. Perhaps absentee landlords who live in Woodside or Atherton qualify? They seem to be quite the oppressed class right now.

The lottery is for people who are bad at math. You can think of it as a tax on people who do not think mathematically. It's no wonder they find themselves in these situations.

When these people buy lottery tickets, it's just the latest example of their poor monetary planning. But that's ok, we'll just steal property from people who have worked hard, worked smart, planned ahead, saved and invested so that these serial bad decision makers can have a do-over for their poor life decisions.

Nice to see the landlord trollbots coming out and making supreme fools of themselves.

Notice that none of them are renters -- so, of course, they have absolutely *no* clue about the situation. Of course, if you're being paid by the (artificially inflated "liked") post...

Do the Math People -- "But that's ok, we'll just steal property from people who have worked hard, worked smart, planned ahead, saved and invested so that these serial bad decision makers can have a do-over for their poor life decisions."

Wow. Judgemental, much?

Don't worry, though -- karma has a way of setting things straight. Because the day will come when you'll need help from the very people you scorn -- and they'll remember what you said about them...

@defending; I was a renter for many many years. Never did I feel like I should be able to dictate what a landlord charged, either I could afford it or not.

What is there to have a “clue” about?

@mvresident2003 -- Stop lying. Just stop lying.

You have NO clue about what renters face nowadays. NO. CLUE. AT. ALL.

So just stop it.

@Defending,

mvresident2003 has been posting here long enough that they're fully aware what renters are facing out there. They just don't care, since they own a house and they took care of #1. They got theirs, so no one else's problems matter. They're a great example of what's wrong with a lot of our society.

I rented in Mountain View 25 years ago. Moved somewhere else less expensive and saved my money and made some good investments. Then I came back to MV and bought a small apartment complex, and maintain reasonable rents for my school teacher, associate professor, cancer survivor, and a couple of high tech workers. I replaced my entire electrical system, repaved the driveway, and spent money and my own time and labor on weekends remodeling my units. And unplugging the toilets and running a rooter through my sewer system. And for a while working in high tech and owning this property. I never asked anybody to subsidize my ability to live here in MV. I went somewhere else that was less expensive and came back to buy. Why do I tell this story? Because I am getting tired of @indefensible mis-characterizing what apartment owners do. @indefensible is providing inaccurate and non-constructive commentary. The issues at hand are: 1) We are in the 5th greatest change in technology over last 35 years. 2) Tech talent is needed to do a lot of work 3) Demand for housing exceeds supply 4) Therefore you need to build more housing and improve transportation capability 5) Rent control does not help increase supply, and is in fact a dis-incentive to retaining lower cost housing. To the NIMBY's out there, I do remember the wonderful orchards, low traffic ect. But the world has changed. Silicon Valley is the epicenter for global technology innovation, and even if you are not in tech, you've benefited from the economic boom created by William B Shockley when he invented the transistor here in Mountain View. If you want a quiet little town that is cheap, low traffic, I offer Endicott New York. What was once the Mainframe capital of the world. Only a limited number of Big Corporations buy mainframes anymore, and nobody wants to move to Endicott anymore. The point of the story: I suggest you change your expectations. A global center of technology is not going to be quiet/cheap/easy to get around, and there is a huge pool of people who want to move here.

I feel for the residents but I don't see any moral or logical justification to opposing the owner plans. If you make it unprofitable for me to rent - I will sell it for ownership and pay all required stuff per your meausre V.
I have friends in SF who are paying $900/month for 2br place. They did all improvements over the last 20 years - but they know they have a steal.

The Mayor is clearly playing populice game and commenting that they oppose the legal right of an owner that is playing by the rules the city set - is disturbing at least. Why not just take away the owner right's to property?

Lower quality housing is being replaced with higher quality housing. So many of these older buildings in Mountain View were poorly designed and cheaply constructed. Asking $3000 for a one bedroom that has no wall insulation, poor plumbing, tiny kitchens, and poor management is criminal.

Yes, what is happening is displacing people (will eventually displace me) but after being stuck in an older building with poor insulation (Ms. Chatty Cathy lives on the other side of the wall and I hear every. single. word. All. Day. Long.), an absentee landlord (very wealthy guy whose business is buying/selling multi-family units), a 'professional' management company that is rude and treats people like dirt, the economy wins. I almost look forward to the notice that my building is being torn down and I have to move.

Those who have $$ will win this battle. They just will. Whether by doing it right (tearing down older buildings with the City's blessings) or by hook or crook (what have I been reading about the backers of Prop V Too Costly lying their way onto the 2020 ballot?) they will win.

There is life beyond Mountain View.

"Let's step back and take a look at history here, what was the American Dream? Pioneers didn't sit there on the East Coast and say " I can't afford it here, someone needs to subsidize me". They made tough choices and took on incredibly rough voyages to find better chances."

Let me know when you're ready to cast off your Prop 13 subsidy and live as you preach.

Lmao at blaming rent control. Apartments were being row-housed before.

They should not be allowed to reduce the housing supply. Build multi story condos and that's fine.

Replacing 59 apartments with 54 homes will make our housing problem worse. These half-steps and minor upgrades are not helping. It's time to build residential towers. It ain't 1950 anymore.

"Replacing 59 apartments with 54 homes will make our housing problem worse. These half-steps and minor upgrades are not helping. It's time to build residential towers. It ain't 1950 anymore."


Agreed, problem is Mayor Siegel will never allow a higher density zoning for these older rent control properties.

Uh.. sorry? Now move out please.

If you want to control the cost of your housing you should BUY a house in a place you can afford to live.

Buying lottery tickets is just silly. It's the same thing as buying magic beans.

Back in my day you could buy a gallon of gasoline for 30 cents! Now it’s $3.50?! Have they added more service? More octanes? : ). Have any of the people liking the anti-landlord posts ever heard about supply, demand, inflation, or hypocrisy? The landlord is greedy for charging what people are willing to pay, but the tenants are not greedy for wanting to pay 1990’s prices forever? Damn you Tesla for building my dream car, making me really want it, but then making it expensive! Michael at the farmers market - giving me that delicious free sample then turning the screws with that peach. I rent in Mountain View - $2600 for 800 square feet, but I can’t imagine ever feeling so entitled to stop my landlord from charging more when others want to pay for it, or selling or developing their property. I am renting, its not mine!

@You where all warned - Why is this the fault of rent control? Without rent control, the rent would have doubled for ALL old apartments in MV. Instead just a few are being demolished and new ones built in their place with triple the rent - those affected would not have afforded double the rent either. So most of the renters have been helped by rent control, just a few have suffered (like tenants of this complex).

Allow people to build higher buildings. That's the only way I can think of to make more housing available.

Well, Defending the Indefensible, you've pulled the oldest trick of someone unable or unwilling to argue the merits of a post out of the bag of tricks - just attack the writers personally ("Landlord Trolls") without addressing the merits of their argument. Or talk about karma. They are correct, this is a natural and rational economic reaction to price (rent) controls distorting a market - some of the supply gets converted to something that is a better investment, and the balance of it gets a new incentive to withhold upkeep and maintenance on their properties. Having lived in New York City and seen the long-term disaster of rent control there, I will surely sign the petition to get the Measure V Too Costly measure on the 2020 ballot for sure to mitigate the terrible policy that Measure V represents.

"The landlords' associations really know to pick their trolls, don't they?"

Just to clarify, there are A LOT of homeowners who follow these rent control developments. Please do not assume that the only people commenting on these articles are employed by the Apartment Association or apartment owners. I have lived here for 10 years, at the time, I scraped to purchase a home that has now increased in value beyond my wildest expectations. I am lucky to be a homeowner here, but there are many of my colleagues and friends who make a high income and absolutely cannot afford to buy a home in MV. Of course the rents are going up, due to the fact that now there are high income individuals who can't afford to buy a home. So they end up renting, which pushes the prices up. It is asinine to expect a city with good jobs and high priced homes to have rent control.

Lenny Siegel needs to be replaced this November! I can't believe what a mess living in this city has become.

The residents protected from displacement by Measure V far exceed those being displaced by tear downs. Housing stability is good for communities. That's why prop 13 was passed. Landlords are not being stripped of their annual profits. Rent stabilization just means that growth of landlord profit is limited. Landlords are the ones complaining because they've been slowed down - not stopped - from winning the lottery at the expense of working families. Food safety laws limit profits for the common good. Would you stop food labeling and inspections? What about car safety? Our society is all about requirements for the common good, and yes these can limit profits.

What do you expect when you elect (now our mayor, unfortunately) a communist agitator to the City Council?

Re: "Replacing 59 apartments with 54 homes will make our housing problem worse."

That's probably part of bringing the new construction up to code, if this property is similar to our complex. If I recall correctly, current code requires 1 guest parking space for every 3 units, in addition to the spaces previously required for the residents. Those additional guest parking spaces have to come from somewhere.

YIMBY are you aware that apartment building owners are also protected under Prop 13? If you get your wish that Prop 13 is overturned, you can definitely expect YOUR rent to shoot up every year to cover the increasing taxes charged to the building owner. Is that really the result you want?

You're the same person who also selfishly preaches that Mountain View should build and build until YOU can afford to buy here. You want a hand-out, but I doubt anyone is overly interested in subsidizing your personal housing and over-building to cover every square inch of this city with towering apartment buildings. I rented for many years, saved my money and lived within my means, and finally bought a home here in Mountain View. I suggest you try that.

I wish you the best, but you're not getting there by whining and demanding that others take care of you, and destroy the quality of life in their home town so you can have what you want.