The City and County of San Francisco recently enacted Ordinance No. 117-13 commonly known as the "Expedited Conversion Program." According to the Board of Supervisors' website, this new law becomes effective Monday, July 29, 2013. Once effective, it appears that this new law among other things:
• Applies to TICs existing under written agreements fully signed on or before April 15, 2013;
• Suspends the existing condo lottery for at least 10 years;
• Will be phased in over 7 years with preferences for the length of owner-occupancy and other factors;
• Limits eligibility based upon a building's eviction history;
• Grants existing tenants the right to buy or take a lifetime lease for the unit they occupy;
• Disallows 5-6 unit buildings from the general condo lottery when it resumes;
• Increases owner-occupancy requirements for 3-4 unit buildings;
• Is inapplicable to 2-unit buildings and the "condo bypass rule";
• Imposes an additional fee of up to $20,000 per unit (lower amounts depending upon years in the lottery); and,
If anyone files a lawsuit, there is a "poison pill" provision which, depending upon whether a claimant challenges the 10+ year general condo lottery suspension, the lifetime lease provision or both, (a) suspends the new program except for certain limited exemptions and (b) if the claimant completely prevails results in no conversions whatsoever until January 1, 2024 (and if a claimant partially wins, a mandate to the Board of Supervisors to try to pass a workaround).
(Link to new law: http://www.sfbos.org/ftp/uploadedfiles/bdsupvrs/ordinances13/o0117-13.pdf. Link to general information on the City's condominium conversion program from its Department of Public Works: http://www.sfdpw.org/index.aspx?page=1242.)
SFAR Members can find a copy of the above advisory in the San Francisco Forms Library.
