Letter: Renters’ Rights Ordinance is bad for both tenants and property owners

The opinions expressed by letter or opinion writers are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of AlachuaChronicle.com.

Dear Editor,

The new rental ordinance in Gainesville slaps the hand of 98% of decent Rental Owners (ROs) for the transgressions of the delinquent 2%. The reward is displacement and gentrification. The Gainesville-Alachua County Association of REALTORS (GACAR) prepared an analysis to determine the true cost of the ordinance. ROs will be responsible for almost $46 million in extra fees and expenses to support regulation, mandatory inspections, and more bureaucracy.

The ordinance mandates change by regulation, leaving tenants and property owners in the crossfire. This will result in higher rental fees, a barrier to market entry for new investors, and diminishing affordable housing opportunities, especially near campus and downtown. ROs are vital to our ecosystem, and GACAR proposes less punitive ordinances, education, empowerment, and community resources for all stakeholders. This symbiotic relationship is designed to offer a collaborative market-driven approach. As written, it can’t protect the vulnerable but makes them prey to becoming collateral damage. 

Cherrie Hughes, Gainesville