The Brief

The city of Los Angeles currently allows landlords to increase rents above what’s permitted in other Southern California cities with rent control. Earlier this year, many L.A. renters received increases of up to 6%.

Now, L.A. renters and some city council members are pushing to lower those limits, saying the current rules are straining tenants who already stretch their budgets to keep a roof over their heads.

Landlords are fighting back in the wake of a nearly four-year rent freeze imposed by the city. They say further limits would be financially punishing as other costs are soaring, from insurance to maintenance and repairs.

How L.A. stacks up to other cities

Renters and lawmakers rallied outside L.A. City Hall on Friday morning, demanding a change to current rules that let landlords give rent-controlled tenants annual increases of anywhere from 3% to 8%, depending on recent inflation figures. L.A. landlords can also add another 2% to those rent increases if they cover a tenant’s gas and electric bills.

When City Councilmember Hugo Soto-Martinez took the microphone, he said he supports setting the city’s maximum annual rent increase at 3%. Councilmembers Nithya Raman and Eunisses Hernandez also spoke at the rally to call for lower rent hikes.

“Cities like West Hollywood, Pasadena, Santa Monica — even Beverly Hills — have better protections than we do,” said Soto-Martinez, himself a renter. “Hopefully we can line ourselves up with the cities that literally, many of them, border our own city.”

Currently, allowable increases in rent-controlled apartments are capped at 2.5% in West Hollywood, 2.75% in Pasadena, 2.8% in Santa Monica and 3.2% for most apartments in Beverly Hills. Those cities did not ban rent hikes as long as the city of L.A. did during the pandemic.

In February, based on current rules tied to inflation, the city of L.A. began allowing rent increases of up to 4% — plus another 2% for landlords who pay for tenants' utilities. These rules apply to rent-controlled housing, generally apartments constructed before Oct. 1, 1978, which make up about three-quarters of all L.A. apartments. Newer housing is covered by a state law that forbids annual rent increases above 8.8% in rental housing built more than 15 years ago.

Cash-strapped renters call for changes

Tenants and renter advocates say L.A.’s rules, which have been in place since 1978, are out of line with other California cities and with the needs of renters. About 63% of L.A. households are renters, according to U.S. Census data. City officials estimate that the majority of those renters (59%) are paying rents considered unaffordable by federal government standards.

Denise Rivera, one of the tenants who showed up at the Friday rally, said she and her husband spend about half their income on rent for the South L.A. apartment where they’re raising four children. Rivera works as a rideshare driver, and her husband works in sanitation. She said they could not afford another big rent increase.

“It would put me, my children and my husband at risk of having to maybe move out of the city, or ending up in the streets,” Rivera said. “We're trying to fight homelessness. It’s gotten out of hand. I think we have to make a change now.”

Some renters are still carrying debts from the pandemic, when job loss or deaths in families caused households to fall behind on their monthly payments. When L.A. launched a $30 million rent relief program last September, the city was flooded with applications calling for help clearing about $475 million in back rent.

Protections against eviction for households unable to pay expired in February. Eviction filings now have risen above pre-pandemic levels.

L.A. City Councilmember Hugo Soto-Martinez speaks at a rally calling for lower caps on annual rent increases.

(

David Wagner

/

LAist

)

Landlords say they’re already struggling with today’s caps

Calls to lower the rent increases are being met with opposing calls from landlords, who say the city’s regulations have harmed them financially.

The city banned all increases in rent-controlled housing from the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic through Jan. 31, 2024. This rent freeze lasted much longer than other cities’ temporary bans on rent hikes.

During those years, L.A. landlord Rich Kissel said he watched as his insurance premiums on a 10-unit building rose by thousands of dollars each year. State Farm recently announced it will stop offering apartment insurance policies this summer across California.

Kissel said it wasn’t just his insurance costs that went up. He also faced higher trash hauling fees, spiking mortgage interest rates and rising maintenance and repair costs.

“Many people are under the mistaken impression that the rent gets paid and the landlord just puts all that rent money in their pocket,” Kissel said. “We have many, many bills to pay.”

Kissel recently sold another L.A. building to what he described as a “large corporation.” He said he feared lower rent caps, and potential requirements for landlords to electrify their buildings as part of the city’s decarbonization efforts, would make his profits vanish.

“The business model isn't sustainable anymore, especially for a small player,” Kissel said.

Irma Vargas, a landlord who also works as a property manager for apartment buildings across L.A., said stacking the city of L.A. against cities like Pasadena is an apples-to-oranges comparison.

“L.A. has had rent control for over 40 years,” Vargas said, noting that many long-term tenants are paying well below market rates. “It's a lot different than, let's say, Pasadena,” where tenants have largely been paying market rents until very recently, Vargas said. Pasadena’s rent control law took effect in late 2022 after voters approved a ballot measure to cap increases.

When will rent hikes come up for a vote? 

The L.A. City Council voted in October to commission a study of the city’s rent control rules. That study is now being carried out by The Economic Roundtable, an L.A.-based nonprofit research organization. The study is expected to come back to the council in upcoming months.

Tenant advocates want the city council to limit annual rent hikes to 3% — or 60% of the region’s most recent inflation rate — whichever is lower. They’ve also asked lawmakers to end the additional 2% increase for landlords who cover utilities, as well as the 10% upcharge landlords can impose when tenants add another member to their household.

Some lawmakers say rent increases don’t only impose a high cost on tenants — they can also impact the city’s budget to address homelessness. Councilmember Eunisses Hernandez said many low-income families are already on the edge, and large rent increases could potentially cause them to fall behind on rent and face eviction.

“We talk about our homelessness crisis almost every single day in city hall,” Hernandez said. “But we will not be able to truly solve homelessness until we stop the flow of people falling into housing insecurity.”

If you care about housing policy

For people who live in L.A., the Board of Supervisors and City Council have the most direct impact on housing affordability in your neighborhood.

• Learn more about who influences local housing policy
  

The best way to keep tabs on your own local government is by attending public meetings for your city council or local boards. Here are a few tips to get you started.

• Find meeting schedules and agendas: City councils usually meet at least twice a month, although larger ones may meet weekly. Committees and boards tend to meet less often, typically once a month. You can find the schedule and meeting agenda on your local government’s website, or posted physically at your local city hall. Find more tips here.

  • Find L.A. City Council agendas and meeting dates
  • Find meetings for L.A. city boards and commissions
  • Find L.A. County agendas and meeting dates
• Learn the jargon: Closed session, consent calendars and more! We have definitions for commonly used terms here.
• How to give public comment: Every public meeting allows community members to give comment, whether or not it’s about something on the agenda. The meeting agenda will have specific instructions for giving public comment. Review more details here.

Angelenos looking up Saturday may have noticed a particularly striking sight — a vibrant sunset framed by clouds.

Tropical moisture coming in from far off the coast could explain it.

“One thing that might have played a role in making it look awfully nice yesterday was those high clouds that were moving in,” Robert Munroe, meteorologist with the National Weather Service, said. “The way the sun was hitting the high clouds made some bright yellows and oranges in the sky. That moisture is actually related to probably mostly Odalys.”

An early sunset at yesterday's "Be The Light" 5K event in Valencia last night.

(

Jenn Baughman

/

Jenn Baughman

)

Odalys is the hurricane (since downgraded to a tropical storm) churning off the coast of Mexico, along with Hurricane Polo.

Neither is expected to make landfall here, but they're forecast to bring high surf, dangerous rip tides and potential flooding to coastlines already battered this month by Hurricane Marie.

The bright side is Munroe said those high clouds from yesterday will be sticking around through at least today, which could make for another pretty sunset this evening.

An earthquake with a magnitude of 3.6 struck off the South Bay at about 8:40 a.m. and was reported as being felt as far as Oxnard.

The U.S. Geological Survey says it was centered about four miles west-southwest of Hermosa Beach. More than 1,500 people reported feeling it within the first hour after it struck. [You can report what you felt to the USGS.]

No significant damage has been reported, which is typical at this low of a magnitude.

The quake was below the threshold of 4.0 magnitude that triggers an alert on the ShakeAlert app.

(

Courtesy ShakeAlert

)

We have earthquake resources

We don't want to scare you, but the Big One is coming. We don't know when, but we know it'll be at least 44 times stronger than Northridge and 11 times stronger than the Ridgecrest quakes in 2019. To help you get prepared, we've compiled a handy reading list:

• Your guide to surviving the Big One
• For earthquakes, forget the 'go-bag.' Here's how to prepare
• How to not get life-threatening diarrhea after a major earthquake
• 10 earthquake-related questions to ask your landlord immediately
• How to prepare for an earthquake if you have a disability

Listen to our podcast

On a Sunday night at the Mexican restaurant La Popular in Claremont, diners are eating to a soundtrack that starts with cumbia and jumps to J Balvin and Bad Bunny before landing on Luther Vandross.

That’s the aim of DJ collective Compás Discoteca — to bring connection and community through live vinyl mixing at La Popular and El Balcon in Ontario.

How Compás Discoteca was born 

Ricardo Carlos, Elias Ruiz, Albert Piña and Adrian Silva have been friends for about two decades. They all DJ as a hobby and often share music. On a night out in 2024, they saw a sign: a parking space for a “compact car,” minus two letters.

“The C and T are missing — compá. Like, ‘We're compás,’” Carlos said, recounting that night.

A "Compás Discoteca" turntable mat.

(

Dañiel Martinez

/

LAist

)

Their DJ collective, Compás Discoteca, was born. “Compás” means “buddies” in Spanish and “Discoteca” means “nightclub."

Seasoning the scene

When Compás Discoteca first formed, the members said Southern California’s vinyl-listening scene was more focused on track selection, letting songs play out in full. The collective wanted to bring more life to the experience by mixing music live.

“It just seemed a little stale,” Silva said. “I feel like we helped to bring some seasoning to that.”

They also wanted to play genres people wouldn’t normally hear together.

“You might hear us jump from funk to cumbia to hip-hop to disco, soul to house. We're just trying to take people on a journey with us,” Silva said.

Each compá takes their turn at the turntables for two 30-minute sets. And each brings their own sound.

Three of the "compás" pose for a picture in between their sets.

(

Dañiel Martinez

/

LAist

)

Silva is the “party-starter.” He gets people dancing.

Carlos has a Latin bent, taking influence from his Puerto Rican, Salvadoran and Creole roots.

Ruiz lives for “jaw-drop moments” and brings records he thinks will surprise his fellow DJs.

Piña spins rare world grooves in the funk and boogie vein.

“He probably gets the most Shazams from us and from the audience,” Ruiz said of Piña. “But most importantly, you feel like you're hanging out and with some good music.”

Albert Piña prepares looks through a box of vinyl records during his DJ set at "La Popular" in Claremont.

(

Dañiel Martinez

/

LAist

)

Feeding off the energy

Compás Discoteca DJs at El Balcon in Ontario on the first Friday of each month and at La Popular in Claremont on the third Sunday.

The vibes for Sundays are chill, they said, and Fridays are for letting it all loose.

“There's like an energy there, like, ‘Oh, man, we made it through the week.’ We try to feed off of that,” Piña said.

Along Highway 62 in Joshua Tree, a stack of high school lockers holds something the High Desert was missing: a real New York-style bagel.

For that, you have DIY baker Richard Lee to thank.

“I want a bagel. What do I do?” Lee remembered thinking after moving to Twentynine Palms in 2023 from Los Angeles, where he had lived for more than a decade.

The Bagel Portal off Highway 62 in Joshua Tree.

(

Richard Lee

/

Courtesy 29 Loaves

)

It wasn’t just any bagel the born-and-raised New Yorker was craving, but the kind from back home that gives “a little crunch” when you bite into its crust — with a “chewy, softer” inside and a taste Lee calls “ineffable.”

“Like maybe a sourdough or an Italian bread,” he said.

Taught by YouTube, tested by family in New York

Richard Lee converted his garage in 29 Palms to make bagels.

(

Courtesy 29 Loaves

)

A tinkerer by nature, Lee launched 29 Loaves in early 2024, bringing bagels he handcrafts in his licensed home operation to Twentynine Palms, Joshua Tree and surrounding communities.

“I went to the culinary school of YouTube,” he said, having watched more than 100 videos on how to make a bagel. At first, he relied on his own taste buds as a guide, before sending his creations to his family in New York to taste.

After months of overnight shipping, Lee said, “Even a UPS store is asking me, ‘Why are you doing that?’”

“I know it makes no sense,” he told them. “That's how I operate.”

29 Loaves serves up New York-style bagels to Joshua Tree and other desert communities.

(

Courtesy 29 Loaves

)

Eventually, his sister gave the thumbs-up. To be extra, extra, extra sure, Lee went to folks living in the desert with New York ties to get their blessing.

“Attention is an ingredient,” Lee said of his bagels. It’s a philosophy he’s honed while running his other business providing IT services, which he now operates remotely.

“Garbage in, garbage out,” he said. “If you make a mistake or something falls on the bagel and marks it, it’ll end up that way as a finished product.”

Why bagels mean so much to him

Lee, whose father is Korean and mother is Brazilian, said his bakery is ultimately about food memories — and draws inspiration from what he ate growing up. The only other baked good 29 Loaves sells is pão de queijo, a gluten-free Brazilian cheese puff he makes.

Richard Lee handmakes New York-style bagels at his home operation.

(

Courtesy 29 Loaves

)

But nothing rivals bagels. Sundays were often bagel days in his childhood home in the Long Island suburbs. As a teenager working for his father, Lee remembered they would make detours off the Long Island Expressway to grab fresh bagels.

“They were nice and plump, and they were so hot,” he said.

Father and son would eat them straight out of the bag — no cream cheese, no nothing.

“Those were the types of memories that I wanna bring here,” Lee said.