The problem happens with landlords (especially large management companies) that are local, too, but it always MUCH worse when the landlord/management company is out of state. All management companies in general love to let their properties literally rot while they increase the rent relentlessly. I live in a beautiful building on Capitol Hill in Seattle, The Biltmore, that is owned by one of these agencies and everything that was wrong in the building when I moved in 16 years ago is 10X worse now and the rent is 4X what I paid. But please, continue with the narrative that we MUST think about the poor landlords and all the responsibility they bear and how unfair everything is with regard to THEM.

*lived

About time! That place has serious, widespread water damage and, in my opinion, management has done little but put bandaids over the mold and rot. Good luck to all those protesting!

We'll see a ton more of this if/when Eudaly and company enact even stricter rent control laws. Enforce the existing laws, they are already on the books and that would clear up the habitability issues. But strict price controls means actual good landlords (as opposed to these scumbags) won't have the ability to recoup the costs of repairs and maintenance, ultimately leading to the deterioration of our housing stock.

And, ironically, all these new rules and restrictions Eudaly wants to push through will push smaller time folks out of the housing game, with the ultimate result that nearly all the city's housing will eventually be owned by REITs and wealthy investors, rather than responsive and responsible local people. Enforce the existing habitability laws against scummy operations like this, leave the good landlords alone so they aren't forced to sell out to big money just waiting because they know how this all works out with the rent control scam (see, e.g., San Francisco, Los Angeles, NYC, etc.).

I lived there and it was horrible. My car was stolen twice from the parking lot and the manager gave me the runaround each time I went asking for footage from the security camera. My dog and I were attacked by the vicious dogs of other residents twice and when I went to the office bleeding to report it I was met with gross incompetence and again given the runaround. I still have pictures of the ice covered stairs they did nothing about. No wonder they got sued. And of course I had to ferociously negotiate to get part of my deposit back.

"My dog and I were attacked by the vicious dogs of other residents twice and when I went to the office bleeding to report it I was met with gross incompetence and again given the runaround."

Used to be a good landlord could just refuse to renew a lease for problem tenants like people who don't control their dogs. Now they have to make thousands in relocation payments. Guess who gets screwed: the good landlord and the good tenant, to the benefit of the shitty tenant. Thanks, Chloe Eudaly!