TAMPA, Fla. — Tampa City County approved an ordinance hoping to bring some relief to renters in the area.
The ordinance that passed unanimously on Thursday requires landlords to give tenants a 60-day notice before a rent increase on annual leases. For monthly leases, landlords will need to give a 30-day warning.
“It does apply to leases that are in effect now that they will have to give you 60 days notice to raise the rent at the end of the term," Rebecca Johns, assistant city attorney, said.
Members with the Tampa Tenants Union say passing this ordinance is a step in the right direction.
“This allows people to be able to either find a new place or to even organize with their neighbors to hopefully get their landlord to not do this rent hike at all," member Jack Wallace explained.
Wallace says so many people in our area are already struggling to pay their current rent prices. “Landlords don’t really want to give you more time than they need to of course," he said.
Eric Garduno with the Bay Area Apartment Association spoke at the council meeting, saying his organization was hoping to see changes made to the ordinance before it was passed.
Garduno says they specifically wanted to see a change with the new rules for monthly leases.
“Right now under state law it’s 15 days, this ordinance proposes to extend that to 30 days," Garduno said. "If you extend it to 30 days that means you’re really making month-long leases two-month-long leases."
Click here to take a look at the Bay Area Apartment Association's reaction to the vote, and to see the letter they sent to councilmembers.
Robin Lockett from the group, Florida Rising, says this vote was a positive step, but that there's still a long way to go.
"It’s too damn high, it’s too high,” she said, describing rent in the area. "So many people are hurting from this."