A new ordinance went into effect in St. Paul at the beginning of the month. Here is ab outline of the new rules. There are pages and pages of words in the new ordinance, which can be found on the StPaul.gov website on the S.A.F.E housing page.
Here are some of the new rules:
Tenant Screening Guidelines
The Tenant Screening Guidelines policy ensures fair access to housing by creating uniform guidelines related to the use of rental, criminal and credit history in applicant screening.
Security Deposit Limitations
The Security Deposit Limitation policy ensures equitable access to housing by limiting the upfront charges related to Security Deposits and Prepaid Rent.
Just Cause Notice Policy
The Just Cause Notice policy improves housing stability by ensuring owners establish one (1) of ten (10) Just Causes and provide renters with written Just Cause Notice when nonrenewing a renter’s Lease.
Advance Notice Policy
The Advance Notice policy supports the preservation of affordable housing and addresses the displacement pressures renters may face during ownership changes by ensuring that current owners provide notice of proposed sale to the City of Saint Paul and renters before an *Affordable Housing Building is placed on the market and new owners provide a notice of sale after the transfer of ownership occurs, coupled with a Tenant Protection period.
Here is a list of reasons tenants can be evicted under the new rules:
Non-payment of rent, Repeated late payment of rent, Material non-compliance, Refusal to renew, Occupancy by property owner or family member, Building demolishment and dwelling unit conversion, Rehab and renovation 8. Complying with a government order to vacate, Occupancy conditioned on employment, Exceeding Occupancy
Also, see St. Paul has more renters than owners
