| A lie by Thomas Sowell about a law created by California's legislature that requires some tenants who have lived in a rental unit for a year or more to be given 60 days notice before they can be evicted |
| Sowell's syndicated editorial titled "Anti-business attitude biggest Calif. problem" begins with these stinging words about lawmakers in California: |
| If you wonder what has gotten California in such an eco-nomic mess, here is a recent sample: The Legislature has passed a law requiring landlords to give tenants 60 days notice, instead of 30 days, before evicting them. In other words, if you are renting to a tenant who refuses to pay rent, plays his music loud all night and makes himself a pain to all an sundry, he can stay for two months before you can get rid of him -- all courtesy of California politicians. |
| I found this claim doubtful. I used google to search for a full and accurate description of the new law. A California state government page that answered all of my questions was this one: http://www.dca.ca.gov/legal/landlordbook/moving-out.htm . As one can see, the truth is very different from what Sowell's words imply. The law says that a 30 day notice of eviction is sufficient for tenants who have lived in a rental unit for less than a year. The 60 day requirement applies only to tentants who have lived in a rental unit for at least a year. This page also mentions another thing that Sowell should have told readers about: is it common in California for landlords to require that new tenants pay their first and last month's rent before moving in. This is called "First and Last" in for-rent ads. (BTW, I've personally experienced this requirement. I lived in Los Angles for 18 months in 1982-3. I had to pay first and last to landlords when I lived there. |