This is a response I received to some emailed questions about Matt's position on Tenancy-in-Common ownership.
Cody,
Thanks for your message. Matt is not opposed to TICs and your situation is exactly the type of TIC ownership that Matt wants to support. As I'm sure you know, during the late '90s dot-com boom and housing crisis, there were a great many unscrupulous real estate brokers that used TICs as a way of turning over housing for a profit and in the process, displacing/evicting a great deal of long-term renters. The actions of these few then unfortunately gave TICs a very bad reputation, and clouded the perception of what is fundamentally one of the best avenues for first time affordable homeownership, which as you mention is strong step in creating stable, vibrant communities. Now, with the current down economy and a more relaxed rental market, we now have an opportunity to develop our housing policy so that it will protect future abuse of TICs while establishing and encouraging it as a way of entering homeownership.
Matt wants to ensure that TIC ownership is actually real tenant ownership, such as your own situation, and not ownership that is displacing or evicting current tenants. To encourage this, Matt is proposing to change the current lottery system to benefit those seeking condo conversion who have clean records and bumping them up in the process, while penalizing those building that have histories of evictions and displacements by moving them back. This way it creates an incentive for real TICs and first time homeownership while protecting the rights of tenants. Matt understands that this is the balance needed to have a successful, effective housing policy.
I hope this helps address your concern, but please feel free to email me with any questions.
take care,
Quintin
Gonzalez for Mayor