A San Jose mobile home park with hundreds of spaces has failed to get city approval for a proposed rent increase.
Officials with the San Jose Rent Stabilization Program have denied the Golden Wheel Mobile Home Park owner’s request to raise rents on low-income residents by $60 per month for at least 12 years. Under the city’s mobile rent policy, property owners can raise rents up to 7% without city approval. With tenants at the mobile home park paying as low as $595 per month, the proposed rent increase would’ve been about 10% for the lowest income tenants, according to San Jose housing officials.
Jeff Scott, spokesperson for the housing department, said mobile home park owners can request permission to activate a one-time rent increase above the allowable amount if they can prove profits haven’t kept up with inflation — a process known as a “fair return petition.”
“The petition is served on all affected residents and a hearing officer is assigned to adjudicate the matter. Hearing officers are independent contractors and trained neutral arbitrators,” Scott told San José Spotlight. “After reviewing the petition, supporting evidence and testimony, the hearing officer concluded in a written decision that the property owner failed to demonstrate they are not receiving a fair return.”
Nick Ubaldi, regional manager for Harmony Communities, which oversees the 221-space mobile home park, said they don’t agree with the denial because they need to recoup the money invested in recent renovations made to the park.
“Over $1 million was recently invested in the park. The ordinance forces rents well below market rate, making it difficult to operate a park of this size,” Ubaldi told San José Spotlight. “By denying this increase, the city has set the business back, discouraged further investment and ultimately put residents at risk as the park deteriorates over time.”
The mobile home park property managers told San José Spotlight they’re appealing the decision. The owner also requested reimbursement of attorney fees, which was denied.
“Housing department staff worked diligently to inform park residents, many of whom speak limited English, about the process and their right to participate and present claims,” Scott said. “Interpretation at meetings and translation of key documents was provided.”
City rent stabilization program officials said they’ve supported at least 22 Golden Wheel park residents by informing them of their rights and holding multiple meetings since the mobile home park owner requested the rent increase last August.
“The reason we had a high number of interactions for Golden Wheel is because we weren’t just responding to calls from residents who had questions, but it was also communication that was going on between our program staff and the park residents,” Vanessa Pacheco, an analyst at the rent stabilization program, said at a Feb. 13 Housing and Community Development Commission meeting.
Newly-appointed Commissioner Ali Sapirman said she was impressed after hearing housing department officials’ extensive efforts to keep mobile home park residents in the loop.
“They prioritized the interests of residents, and I trust that the city made a fair assessment,” Sapirman told San José Spotlight. “Based on the information provided by the city, I would say (the mobile home park) should not appeal.”
In addition to overseeing Golden Wheel Mobile Home Park, Harmony Communities runs Western Trailer Park in San Jose, which has been accused of ongoing illegal rent hikes on its residents. A Harmony Communities spokesperson said the rent increase at the RV lots are not illegal because recreational vehicles are not mobile homes.
Ubaldi told San José Spotlight the city’s failure to hold Harmony Communities accountable to its own policy proves the rent hike is not illegal. The city should subsidize their tenants’ rents instead of forcing private businesses to “shoulder the burden,” he said.
Emily Hislop, rent stabilization and eviction prevention manager for the city, said while San Jose has yet to learn of any unlawful eviction lawsuits being filed against residents, the housing department is looking out for any potential lawsuits where it can intervene.
“They are a very well known park owner, and these tactics, or this behavior, is pretty typical for them across the state,” Hislop said at the meeting.
Sapirman said the city should create a public database of landlords, including mobile home park owners, found to be illegally increasing rent prices — similar to San Jose’s mechanism for flagging construction contractors with unpaid wage theft settlements.
“One thing I suggested was having a registry for bad actors and repeat offenders,” she told San José Spotlight. “Then we need to figure out what the penalties are, whether it’s like a fee or another system. If we have repeat offenders they shouldn’t be able to work in San Jose.”
Contact Vicente Vera at [email protected] or follow @VicenteJVera on X.
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