Evidence-Based Advocacy for Housing Preservation

Policy without evidence repeats itself. The same interventions are proposed, enacted, allowed to expire, and proposed again — without systematic analysis of whether they worked, for whom, and at what cost. LeaseBase Housing Foundation’s Research and Advocacy Program is built on the premise that durable housing policy requires durable evidence.

Our research focuses on a segment of the housing market that is frequently under-documented: small, independent landlords and the naturally occurring affordable housing (NOAH) they provide. Large operators generate data through investor filings, HMDA reports, and CRA disclosures. Small landlords — who own a majority of rental units in most California cities — are largely invisible in official data systems.

Research Agenda

Landlord Retention Studies

The core question driving our research program: what causes small landlords to leave the California rental market, and what would keep them in it?

Existing research from the Urban Institute, Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, and California Housing Partnership offers partial answers. Financial stress is a factor — but our preliminary work suggests it is not the primary driver. Administrative burden, regulatory complexity, and adverse experiences with the legal and code enforcement system appear to drive exit decisions at least as strongly as financial returns.

We are developing a multi-year longitudinal study of Sacramento-area small landlords to track:

  • Compliance costs: Time and money spent on regulatory compliance, including fair housing training, habitability inspections, registration fees, and legal counsel
  • Exit intentions: Survey-based intention to sell, rent increase plans, and factors associated with anticipated exit
  • Demographic patterns: Whether landlord exit rates differ by owner demographics, property age, or location — and whether communities of color face disproportionate regulatory burden
  • Tenant outcomes: What happens to tenants when small landlords sell to institutional buyers? Do rents increase? Do tenants relocate outside their communities?

This research is designed to produce findings publishable in peer-reviewed journals and translatable into policy briefs accessible to city council members, housing authority staff, and state legislators.

NOAH Inventory Mapping

Naturally occurring affordable housing is difficult to count because it isn’t defined by subsidy status — it’s defined by rent levels relative to area income. A unit renting for $1,200/month in Sacramento is affordable to a household at 60% AMI not because of a subsidy contract, but because the property owner hasn’t raised rents to market rates.

That affordability is fragile. When the owner sells, market pressure typically drives the new owner to raise rents. When the owner faces code enforcement costs, the math may change. When the property requires capital investment the owner can’t fund, sale to an institutional buyer becomes more likely.

We are working to map NOAH inventory in the Sacramento region using assessor data, rental market data, and administrative housing records. The goal is to identify which properties are most at risk of transitioning from naturally affordable to market-rate, and where proactive intervention — acquisition, subsidy, or landlord support — could preserve affordability.

Policy Analysis

California generates housing legislation at a high volume. The 2023–2024 legislative session produced more than 40 bills touching residential tenancy, landlord-tenant relations, or housing development. Many of these bills have been inadequately analyzed for their effects on small landlords specifically.

Our policy analysis work produces timely assessments of proposed and enacted legislation, with particular attention to:

  • Unintended consequences for small landlords: Regulations designed for large operators often create disproportionate compliance costs for small owners. We document these effects and propose amendments or exemptions where appropriate
  • Implementation gaps: Laws without adequate implementation infrastructure — enforcement mechanisms, compliance resources, landlord education — often produce neither the intended compliance nor the intended housing outcomes
  • Comparative policy analysis: What have other states done? California can learn from Oregon, Minnesota, and Connecticut, each of which has enacted different approaches to landlord retention and NOAH preservation

Advocacy Work

Research informs advocacy. Our advocacy program translates findings into engagement with city councils, county boards, state legislative committees, and administrative agencies.

Sacramento City and County

Sacramento’s City Council and the Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency (SHRA) make decisions affecting independent landlords and affordable housing stock on a regular basis. We engage with:

  • Rent ordinance implementation: Sacramento’s rent control ordinance (applicable to units built before February 1995) has implementation specifics that affect small landlords differently than large operators. We advocate for proportional compliance burdens and clear guidance.
  • Housing trust fund priorities: SHRA administers housing trust funds that can be used for acquisition, rehabilitation, and landlord support. We advocate for allocation priorities that preserve NOAH
  • Code enforcement reform: Sacramento’s code enforcement system can be a productive partner in habitability improvement or a driver of small landlord exit, depending on implementation. We engage with the City on proactive compliance assistance models that prioritize remediation over penalty

State Legislature

California’s housing committees in both chambers receive testimony from a wide range of stakeholders. LeaseBase Housing Foundation participates in the legislative process to represent the perspective of small, independent landlords and their tenants in the affordable housing market.

We have engaged on legislation including:

  • AB 1482 (2019) implementation: Monitoring and documenting compliance patterns and unintended consequences
  • SB 567 (2023): Tenant protection amendments affecting no-fault eviction standards and relocation assistance requirements
  • Housing accountability measures: Legislation affecting local government’s ability to condition housing permits on affordability requirements

Research Publications

Our published research is available at no cost. We produce:

  • Policy briefs (4–6 pages): Designed for elected officials and their staff; focused on specific policy questions with clear recommendations
  • Research reports (20–40 pages): Full methodology, data, and analysis; appropriate for housing authority staff, academic audiences, and advocacy organizations
  • Fact sheets (1 page): Key statistics on landlord retention, NOAH inventory, and housing affordability for use in presentations, testimony, and media

To receive our research publications, join our mailing list. To inquire about research collaboration or data sharing, contact research@leasebasefoundation.org.