We are winning!!!

GAAR Members,
On Monday night during the City Council meeting O-22-59, a proposed ordinance to create a “Housing Registry” for rentals was considered. The bill is full of punitive elements designed to inflict maximum pain on ALL landlords and from what we see provides absolutely no tangible benefit to landlords, tenants, or the public.

Our recent victories in defeating this and other measures, like Rent Control, are a direct result of the work done by HELPABQ and other organizations that have begun to intentionally support pro-industry candidates.  NAR, NMAR, and GAAR should take pride in these efforts but realize that we are not yet at the finish line.  As the 2024 election cycle gets underway we will be hard at work interviewing City Council candidates and identifying REALTOR® CHAMPIONS to fill these seats.

It is now more important than ever to realize that your RPAC investments have made this effort possible. Please consider helping GAAR ramp up going forward with an extra investment in RPAC.  And if you have not yet invested, I hope you see the value in this important work and you too will join the effort.

To invest in RPAC (minimum contribution is $15) click here.

Best,

Kent Cravens, RCE, CMLX2
Chief Executive Officer / Government Affairs Director
Greater Albuquerque Association of REALTORS®

A summary of the Albuquerque Journal article from May 2, 2023

City Council Rejects Residential Rental Registry

Albuquerque City Council has rejected Councilor Tammy Fiebelkorn's proposed "residential rental database ordinance" on a 7-2 vote. The ordinance was designed to track the number, availability, and cost of apartments and other residential rentals in Albuquerque. However, landlord concerns that it was intrusive, burdensome, and anti-business were heeded by the council.

Under Fiebelkorn's proposal, landlords would have had to provide the city with information about each rental property, including the owner's name and address, the property's age, the number of units, whether they were leased, and how much they charged for rent and security deposits. They would also have had to report what other fees, if any, they assess and provide annual updates if anything changed.

Fiebelkorn stated that the legislation was born out of her desire to better understand the scope of the local housing crisis and develop targeted solutions. Still, opponents from the rental industry repeatedly complained about the "14 lines" of information they would have to provide for each unit and the prospect of making their contact, pricing, and other information public.

Supporters of the bill called it a simple and straightforward way to evaluate the current situation. However, opponents argued that the administrative effort would lead to higher costs for tenants and that making rental owners' private information public to disgruntled tenants could be problematic.

In response to rental industry feedback, Fiebelkorn scrapped her initial proposal, which would have required landlords to get permits for rental properties costing $70 or $700 to start, depending on the number of units. Instead, she opted for a database system with free enrollment.

Councilor Dan Lewis voted against the bill and expressed his concerns about demonizing and inflammatory comments from some of the bill's supporters who cast landlords as unscrupulous profiteers. He stated that bills like this and resolutions that paint landlords in that kind of light are concerning.

Although Fiebelkorn argued that the final bill was not overly onerous and that even short-term rentals like Airbnbs are required to have a city permit in Albuquerque, only Pat Davis ultimately joined her in support of the database.