CAA stops rental registry and eviction reporting proposals in Costa Mesa

After hearing from the California Apartment Association and housing providers, the Costa Mesa City Council on Tuesday voted 5-2 to reject a rental registry program and an at-fault eviction reporting requirement. Both proposals would have added new fees, data-reporting mandates, and administrative burdens with no clear policy justification.

The rental registry would have required owners of covered multifamily units to register their properties, report lease activity, vacancies, and tenant details, and pay an estimated $19 per unit annually - funding a program projected to cost more than $321,000 a year.

In a March 17 opposition letter, CAA argued that the program duplicated data already available through commercial and government sources, carried significant fiscal risk, and lacked measurable outcomes tied to housing affordability or supply. CAA also noted that Costa Mesa has no rent control ordinance and that a rent registry - a core component of rent control enforcement - was premature.

The eviction reporting proposal would have required landlords filing an unlawful detainer for at-fault evictions to separately report those actions to the city. Council members raised concerns about tenant privacy gaps and the redundancy of information already available through the California Superior Court system.

The outcome reflected an outpouring of opposition from housing providers. Nearly 50 individuals provided public testimony, and more than 200 comment letters were submitted, with the majority opposing both proposals. The result underscores that staying engaged in local policy fights produces real results - and that housing providers' voices carry weight when they show up.