San Luis Obispo landlords question proposed rental registry

February 23, 2026

By KAREN VELIE

San Luis Obispo landlords and city hall administrators continue to clash over a proposed rental registry and the eventual outcome. During Tuesday’s SLO City Council meeting, the city will hold a study session to discuss the costs and features of the proposed registry.

On the list of San Luis Obispo’s major goals for 2025 through 2027 is “housing and neighborhood livability – healthy, safe, and affordable goal,” according to a SLO City Council Feb. 24 staff report. The plan is to root out bad landlords and create rent stabilization through a registry of all rental units in the city.

In the City of SLO, 62% of all housing units are rentals, according to the staff report. The average rent for the approximately 14,870 rental units is $3,200 a month.

Rental registries are databases of information about rental properties, including ownership and rent prices. In some cases, the municipality requires inspections while passing regulations to promote rent stabilization.

To pay for the software and staff to run the program, the city plans to have a yearly fee per housing unit. For example, Berkley’s rental registry costs $8.7 million a year to operate. Landlords pay between $212 and $344 a year for each rental unit.

While city administrators believe the program will result in properly maintained properties while also controlling rent prices, local landlords do not agree.

Several landlords told CalCoastNews that increased costs for the registry program and regular inspections will be passed onto renters through higher rental prices. The better option, they say, is to publicize the rights and responsibilities of renters and how to report landlords who are not properly maintaining their properties.

“In my opinion, as a landlord, it is a money grab plane and simple,” Steve Barasch said. “I provide a summary of tenant responsibilities with all my leases.”