Isla Vista Rental Inspection Pilot Program Heads to Board of Supervisors

Program Will Start Rental Inspections on Del Playa

A new pilot program put forward by 2nd District Supervisor Laura Capps would allow the county to proactively inspect rental units in Isla Vista to ensure they are safe and provide reports to the Board of Supervisors on the program’s effectiveness. | Credit: Courtesy Laura Capps's Office

This article was underwritten in part by the Mickey Flacks Journalism Fund for Social Justice, a proud, innovative supporter of local news. To make a contribution go to sbcan.org/journalism_fund.

A pilot rental inspection program specific to Isla Vista will go before the County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday for approval. The pilot program, which was introduced by District 2 Supervisor Laura Capps’s office in January, aims to improve the living conditions for young and low-income tenants in the community.

The pilot program, funded by settlement money the county received from UCSB last year, will attempt to take a proactive approach to inspecting units in I.V. The county will pay for all inspections, with no inspection fees for landlords or tenants. If approved by the Board of Supervisors, the program would start with the houses on the ocean side of Del Playa Drive, along the bluffs.

Throughout the community, Isla Vista tenants have reported problems with broken plumbing, mold, and rodent infestations, among other issues in their units, according to Capps’s office. The Independent has also received stories of mold and plumbing problems. But rental prices remain high in I.V., with a bed in the community averaging between $1,000 and $1,500 a month, depending on how many students share the room (four people to a room is not uncommon). Given the lack of housing available to students, and the therefore nearly guaranteed college-aged renting population, landlords have less incentive to keep up the properties, especially those who do not live in the community itself.

Currently, the county inspects rental units if they receive a complaint.

“One of the reasons the conditions are so poor in Isla Vista is that our system is such that someone needs to report a problem in I.V.,” Capps said in a press event on May 1.

Ninety-six percent of students are college-aged, according to Santa Barbara County. Capps said that in community town halls as well as in town, students have reported fearing retaliation if they complained.

If the program is approved, landlords would have 45 days to register for the program starting May 13. The county plans to verify property owners through property tax records. If landlords refuse to cooperate with the inspection program, the county said it can get access through the tenant’s consent.

The county said it will hire building inspectors on contract to review the properties. These contractors will make sure the property is up to state code. That includes determining whether all bedrooms are permitted, sanitation is satisfactory, stairs and doors are in safe condition, units have heat, and buildings are not rodent-infested, among other things. This program will focus on the rental units and not consider parking at the buildings.

The goal, said county officials, is for landlords to have time to make any required repairs in the summer, before the fall term starts. The pilot program itself will last one year, which will provide flexibility to continue work if needed.

Leases for the following year are often signed several months before moving. That means many students already have their lease for the fall and are planning to live in a particular space. If a property requires extensive repairs that are unable to be completed in the summer, Capps’s office said it plans to work with UC Santa Barbara to temporarily rehouse tenants in the surrounding area in backup housing until repairs are completed.

If you are a renter and need to report a complaint to the county, you can do so here.