The Landlord Fairness Code Initiative, passed in the November general election as Measure 1, requires landlords to set limits on rental fees, provide two notices before increasing rent, offer relocation assistance when the increase is 5% or greater and prevent evictions for certain groups as of Friday.

The way it was written prohibits the city from enforcing the new rules administratively, and the initiative cannot be amended for two years without a public vote. Tenants would have to take their landlords to court for any alleged violations.

At the end of a city presentation Monday detailing the initiative, there was more than an hour of question and answers, mostly from frustrated landlords who believe the changes only benefit tenants and would force many landlords to sell their properties.

“Is there any provision for the landlord whose tenant decided to not pay rent, even though they are still working?” one landlord asked, citing a new rule that landlords cannot evict tenants between Nov. 1 and April 1. “What’s to stop all tenants from not paying their rent?”

“So, there isn’t any provision as to what constitutes, legally, for a tenant to not pay their rent,” responded ChiQuata Elder, the landlord tenant coordinator for the city. “I can’t say there is anything that would stop tenants to stop paying their rent. However, I can tell you it is highly discouraged from both landlord-tenant attorneys that work with tenants because they will still be liable for their rent, and it could make it harder for them to find another place to live.”

Landlords who violate the new laws may not increase rent or evict a tenant, the presentation clarified. A landlord can seek a court order to be exempt from these provisions and allow eviction if they can show they would experience “an undue and significant hardship if the code were enforced,” Elder read during the Monday presentation.

The lack of city enforcement of the new rules causes confusion for many, as the Landlord Fairness Code Initiative conflicts with the existing Rental Housing Code passed in July that does require enforcement. The Landlord Fairness Code also requires two notices to increase rent starting at 210 days versus the Rental Housing Code’s one notice at 120 days. The Landlord Fairness Code also caps late fees at $10 compared to a cap of $75 in the Rental Housing Code.