No-Cause Eviction Ban Could End Month-to-Month Leases

According to the Willamette Week, Portland Tenants United's Margot Black and John DiLorenzo of the Equitable Housing PAC find themselves on the same side of a tenant's rights issue this week. Though the two outspoken voices are generally on opposite sides of the housing debate in Portland, they agree that HB 2004 is likely to be a death knell for month-to-month leases. In its current form, the bill's restrictions on no-cause evictions only protect tenants who are on month-to-month leases. If it passes many landlords are likely to stop offering those leases, requiring instead that tenants sign a fixed term lease. A spokeswoman for Tina Kotek argues that tenants and landlords will both benefit from the stability created by fixed term leases, but Margot Black disagrees. She argues that there are many instances in which a tenant might need the flexibility of a month-to-month lease, and absent that option would have to pay lease-break fees in the event of a move. Read more.