We Need to Talk About the Ellis Act

In theory, the Ellis Act allows small landlords to exit the rental business.

In practice, it's not that simple, and it's abused far too often.

It's used with increasingly alarming frequency. Case in point: according to Wehoville, the Ellis Act enabled 48 evictions in the first half of the year alone.

That's 48 more people competing for a shrinking supply of rental apartments. We've already talked about the 600-ish people who are in danger of losing their homes in Barrington Plaza. There are entire maps devoted to the tens of thousands of units (yes, really) emptied by the Ellis Act, although there is limited data on what becomes of the emptied homes or the people displaced from them. Let's see if we can't fill some of that gap.

I've reached out to a few people affected by Ellis Act evictions, but the more stories that come out, the better.

If you have been Ellis Acted or know someone who was, please reach out via the contact page. I'm all ears.

To join the discussion, visit the comments section of the Los Angeles Preserved subreddit.