Rent Price Hike At Building In Crenshaw District May Force Some Residents Out

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — Some Crenshaw District residents are in a bind after they say their apartment building's new owner decided to raise their rent.

Some at the building in the 1600 block of Crenshaw Boulevard near Venice have been residents for years and say they've been told to pay up or leave.

The two sons of one of the residents, whose lived in the building for 22 years, were moving her belongings Monday.

"I always paid my rent on time. Never had no problem. Never in my life," she said.

The building, 43 units in total, was bought by a company called LaFayette Square Investment, for $10 million on Jan. 1.

The owners subsequently sent each tenant a no-fault eviction notice making it clear they would no longer accept Section 8 housing, a government program that helped many of the residents pay their rent.

But even those not on Section 8 say they can't afford to stay at the building because the rent is going up more than $400 a month.

"Stink. It does," Los Angeles City Council President Herb Wesson, who also represents the district, said.

Wesson said even though the new owners have done nothing to violate the law, he's still not happy about it.

"This is just one of those things where you wish you had a magic wand," he said.

CBS2 attempted to reach LaFayette Square LLP but was told no one would be in their offices throughout the day or anytime soon. The company has also ignored requests made by Wesson.

"We've had no luck up to this point getting directly in contact with the owner," Wesson said. "We've sent requests and things of that nature."

The new rent, beginning in June, will go from $1200 a month to $1800 a month for a one bedroom; from $1900 a month to $2200 for a two bedroom.

Meanwhile, Wesson said his office would try to locate other Section 8 housing for those evicted.

The eviction date has been scheduled for June 13.