Breaking UCRent.
Hundreds of students have been attempting to exit their leases for months, but landlords continue to exploit students for illegal termination fees while continuing to charge students for months of rent for empty apartments that cannot be filled. We cannot stay silent while landlords are exploiting thousands of students. It’s time to work on our legal options. We are looking to cancel leases on the basis of illegal clauses being included in our respective leases. This will require extensive legal advice, and lead to potential lawsuits and class actions. Unfortunately, fighting exploitation will not come cheap.
Goals
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01
Public Awareness and Support: The first step for any successful movement is to create awareness of the problem and gain support from the public.
a. Students are looking to bring media attention to this issue through local news outlets.
b. Students are also encouraging their campus leadership to stand up in support of their students.
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02
Lease Leniency: Riverside City Council Member Andy Melendrez has taken charge and is working to negotiate on behalf of students to reach a mutually beneficial agreement between corporate level real-estate management and students
a. Ideally, students would be released from all rent obligations after paying a small lump-sum. Students should not be required to find a replacement tenant; this is an unreasonable request in the midst of a pandemic.
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03
Legal Options: Unfortunately, negotiations will not solve all issues, and some students may need to pursue (collective) legal action. We are currently accepting donations at tinyurl.com/ucrent
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04
Policy Change: Ideally, this policy change would start on a county level and move its way up to state level policy.
a. Students have already started lobbying for the support of several county supervisors and state assembly members and senators.
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05
Keep fighting: There isn’t just one policy solution to end this problem. There is a massive power disparity between property owners and renters. A massive overhaul of the California Civil Code will likely be required to fix the structural inequality that exists. Renter’s rights are important now and will continue to be important in the future. Keep fighting for what’s right.
About Us.
Due to the pandemic, our classes for the next semester are being held online, yet students across the country are trapped in off campus leases regardless of whether they chose to stay there. Campus housing is expensive - and the students most eager to save money on their educational expenses find housing off campus. Nonetheless, this specific population of responsible American students finds itself committed to pay rent for empty apartments. Our families are already impacted economically with lost wages - and having to pay for unutilized housing undermines our livelihood. We cannot afford to pay for an empty apartment when we are already struggling to pay rent or mortgage at home.
This situation is not unique to just UC Riverside students. The latest census data indicates that 25% of college students reside in off-campus housing (not with family). This amounts to well over 3 million students that may be forced by large real estate corporations to pay for leases, while these corporations take subsidies and bailouts from the government and get to pause their payments with their banks.
Many students can no longer afford rent and real estate companies are taking advantage of vulnerable students by threatening damage to credit scores and legal action. Help students fight exploitation. Scroll down to see how you can help!
Recent. Updates
August 04
Students met with UCR administration/ Campus leadership to discuss the issue and how UCR can support students. Students and staff are working on expanding support for students during this time. The legal services page is linked here.
August 19
UCR held an “Off-Campus Housing Meeting” in which UCR Housing Faculty, Legal counsel, government and student representatives reviewed issues surrounding this student crisis. Students were able to voice all primary concerns and potential solutions. UCR is hoping to put out a letter of support alongside government officials soon.
Important. Links and Articles
