As spring begins to give way to summer, legislative activity shows no signs of cooling off. Our May TOPA Alert generated many questions and comments and a further update on the pending TOPA reform legislation is included...more
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul recently signed into law the Affordable Housing Retention Act (AHRA), which for the next four years enables condo conversions of specific buildings in New York City with a presale requirement for...more
As of 6 May 2025 Germany has a new government. After intensive coalition negotiations, CDU/CSU and SPD agreed on a joint housing policy in their coalition agreement, combining and developing elements of both manifestos under...more
On May 7, 2025, Washington Governor Bob Ferguson signed House Bill 1217 (HB 1217) into law, establishing statewide residential rent control measures, effective immediately. The legislation limits annual rent increases,...more
This month’s Alert updates recent housing legislation, including proposed amendments to the DC Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Act (TOPA), the launch of the DC RentRegistry portal, and updates to Montgomery County's rent...more
CHICAGO—City Begins Converting Loop Office Buildings to Housing -Chicago’s La Salle Corridor Revitalization Initiative kicked off last week, beginning with the transformation of a historic 14-story Loop office building into...more
With very active legislative sessions in the DMV region, we're providing these updates on proposed legislation and several ongoing efforts impacting the multifamily industry. ...more
On 23 February 2025, Germany will hold general parliamentary elections. One of the campaign issues is the continuing housing shortage as one of the most pressing socio-political challenges of our time. The current German...more
CHICAGO — Data Shows City’s Labor Market Stabilizing - Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago President Austan Goolsbee said the latest jobs report suggests the labor market is stabilizing at full employment and is not a sign of an...more
With Election Day fast approaching, market indicators appear more promising, notwithstanding regulatory hurdles. As a follow-up to our most recent Alert, below are some updates on recent multifamily legislative and legal...more
This fall, California voters will decide whether the state should continue prohibiting cities and counties from enacting or expanding rent control. If they vote “yes” in November, San Francisco could be ready to extend the...more
The City of Rockville and Montgomery County are addressing affordable housing with differing approaches. Both jurisdictions took action on rent control this summer, with plans for future legislation or applicable regulations...more
The Connecticut General Assembly recently passed a bill requiring municipalities to assess properties used solely for low and moderate-income housing based on the capitalized value of their net rental income....more
In 2023, Providence had the largest year over year residential rent increase compared to every other major U.S. city. Rising rental rates are not isolated to the Ocean State. Median residential rent prices increased in cities...more
On February 20, the US Supreme Court declined to hear challenges brought by rental unit owners to recent changes made to New York City’s Rent Stabilization Laws. Since these changes went into effect in 2019, news outlets have...more
Senate Bill (SB) 1227, introduced by Senator Scott Wiener on February 15, 2024, would help speed the recovery of downtown San Francisco by creating a new CEQA exemption for qualifying commercial, institutional, student...more
The Florida Legislature continues to modify the proposed changes to the Live Local Act (Act) through the latest version of Senate Bill 328 (SB 328), passed on February 7, 2024. For background on the original Act, see “Live...more
On the multifamily front, 2024 is off to a fast start. Notwithstanding high interest rates and a challenging regulatory environment, multifamily transactions continue. As a follow-up to our most recent Alert, below are some...more
The California Coastal Commission unanimously voted last Thursday to issue $4.7 million in fines to the Rio Del Mar Beach Island Homeowners Association. The violations, accruing since 1982, have to do with blocked beach...more
BALTIMORE — New UpSurge CEO Bets on Baltimore, Tech Tech- entrepreneur Kory Bailey — who was recently named CEO of UpSurge, a nonprofit, professional ecosystem-building organization — spoke about his efforts to build a...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: Montgomery County has enacted a comprehensive rent stabilization law that will limit annual rent increases for rental housing in the County to three percent plus CPI, with a maximum limit of 6%. The law...more
The Biden administration last Thursday announced further steps to lower housing costs and boost supply. The administration is looking to incentivize municipalities to lift restrictive land use and zoning policies by...more
CHICAGO — Mayor Johnson Launches Campaign to Close Chicago’s Device Gap- Mayor Brandon Johnson, in partnership with World Business Chicago, announced the launch of a month-long campaign encouraging Chicago’s business...more
As noted in our prior alert, two different rent control bills are pending in Montgomery County, MD. The HOME Act (16-23) would limit rent increases to the lesser of 3% or the Voluntary Rent Guidelines published annually by...more
As a follow-up to our prior alert, we wanted to provide an update to legislative activities in the region: New Prince George’s County Updated Rent Control FAQs. We continue to receive many questions regarding the...more