Earle Vaughan
Views from AAGLA's President
RSO Reform Now
The time is right to reform the ancient Rent Stabilization Ordinance. The current system is flawed and only perpetuates bad public housing policy, yielding lower quality housing and less of it. It helps neither low-income tenants or housing providers, who work to provide safe, clean, affordable housing every day.
We support many changes to the ordinance.
1) Maintain and increase the current floor of 3% per year for our tenants. Our costs are skyrocketing (especially the utilities that the city has increased dramatically over the last few years). The current Housing Department formula does not reflect our true costs. AAGLA’s recent ownership costs study shows that our true costs exceed 7% more per year.
2) Increase the capital improvement pass throughs to 100% so that we may improve our buildings and increase the quality of life for our tenants at the same time. I have three other words that describe a good capital improvement program, JOBS, JOBS, and more JOBS for our city residents.
3) Maintain the 1% pass throughs for owner-provided gas and electric, and extend at least an additional 1% pass through for water and sewer costs.
4) Keep the RSO and SCEP staff at current levels.
5) Improve inspector training to create more consistency in our SCEP inspections.
6) Improve and revamp the REAP program to allow for fairness when buildings are brought up to code.
In short, the City of Los Angeles cannot provide all the housing for its residents. It needs to ensure that private housing providers make reasonable returns on their investments and hard work. Remember, we are the taxpayers, voters, and small business people in our communities who make a difference.
Congratulations Lainy & Jason Parry
Congratulations go out this month to AAGLA Vice President Lainy Parry and her husband, Jason. They are the proud parents of a new bouncing baby boy since July 7. Congratulations to you. Now the fun begins.
Come to AAGLA's State Legislator Breakfast Reception — July 10
Also, Become a Certified Success with CAMT Training
Legislator Breakfast Reception
Don't miss our Annual Legislator Breakfast Reception on July 10. Meet and greet local representatives of the State Legislature. This exciting event starts at 10:00 a.m. at AAGLA's main office, located at 621 S. Westmoreland Ave. in L.A., and features former Assembly Speaker Robert Hertzberg and AAGLA lobbyist Steve Carlson. Don't miss it.
Are you looking to do more with less in these tough economic times? Enhance your professional growth and value in the apartment industry by becoming a Certified Apartment Maintenance Technician (CAMT). Take your career to the next level.
CAMT training helps you to preserve the value of your apartment community and increase resident retention.
When
Select Fridays (TBA), July-September 2010, at AAGLA's main office, 621 S. Westmoreland Ave., L.A., from 8:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Who should attend
All members of your maintenance team should attend. If you don't have a maintenance team, attend yourself. To earn the CAMT certificate, participants must have at least one year of apartment maintenance experience prior to applying for CAMT.
Instructor
Pablo Paz, CAMT, is a bilingual instructor with more than 20 years of apartment maintenance experience and four years experience conducting maintenance training for a national apartment concern.
The price is $ 800 for the entire CAMT program. If you prefer, pay only $110 per individual class.
Learn more about how you can earn your distinctive designation and make yourself more valuable than ever. Visit www.naahq.org or www. ApartmentCareerHQ.org, or call Kim McCrossen at 703-248-8370, for further info and/or to register.
One-Half-Off Member Drive Ends June 30 — Act NOW!
NO RENT FREEZE IN L.A.
Our new ONE-HALF-OFF new member drive ends June 30. It features a half‑price discount ($54 instead of $109) for the first year's basic annual dues for new members who join and
are not current AAGLA members, or have dropped AAGLA membership prior to October 31, 2009.
We are still reeling from the Great Recession, and we understand that some AAGLA members, hard-hit like everyone else, had to drop their AAGLA membership as they struggled just to survive. We want you back, but time is limited. You must act by June 30 to get this deal. And it is a deal. When you join, you'll soon be glad that you did.
With the Los Angeles City Council proposing a 0% annual rent increase, at this writing, we need each other now more than ever. We must also fight, among myriad other battles, the already‑implemented 0% rent increase in West Hollywood through our upcoming cost study of the real costs of apartment ownership, which we all know to be higher than the CPI.
Apartment Ownership Cost Study
Thank you all who contributed to this effort. We have raised the required money to do the study through your efforts and those of our industry allies. Again, thank you.
Now, for those owners who have not yet joined AAGLA, do it. Do it today. Get in on the action. Let the savings begin, because "AAGLA Membership Doesn't Cost — It Pays."
AAGLA Accomplishments — What Have We Done for You Lately?
I’m occasionally asked the following question by owners: "What have you (AAGLA) done for me lately?" It's a fair question. Here's the short list of AAGLA's recent accomplishments on your behalf.
• Won A $30-Million Lawsuit Against DWP, Saving You $120-Million Over Four Years.
• Affiliated with the National Apartment Assn., bringing You New, Enhanced Member Benefits.
• Created a Free Online Vacancy Listing Service to Help You Rent Vacancies.
• Partnered with ISU Derby Insurance on A Worker's Comp Insurance Program to Save You Money.
• Got Bad-Debt Reporting Service to Help You Collect Money from Deadbeats.
• Started New Periodic Meetings in Ventura County, West Hollywood and Koreatown to Keep You Informed and Out of Trouble.
• Helped Get Water Over-use Penalties Reduced by 86.66% in L A.
• Started A Product/Services Council Getting You Real Time Live Answers to the Tough Questions.
• Helped Small Owners (four or less units) by Getting Their Relocation Fees Reduced by Thousands of Dollars.
• Co-sponsored an Historic Meeting, Finding Common Ground in Changing Times, with Some Unlikely Folks in Santa Monica.
• Successfully Hosted Our 13th Annual Trade Show for Your Enjoyment.
• Helped Convince the L. A. City Council That a 22% DWP Electric Rate Hike Is Way Too Much.
• Merged with the San Fernando Valley Apartment Assn., Growing Your Political and Legislative Clout.
So, now you know some of what we've done for you lately. And just in case you forget, or someone asks you, we'll run this list in future issues and online, adding to it as we continue to show you that, "Membership Doesn't Cost — It Pays."
AAGLA Announces New One-Half-Off Member Drive
and Tell-A-Friend Program
Here are two new AAGLA programs to kick off the New Year right. Our new Tell-A-Friend Program will net existing members free $25 AAGLA coupons to use for future tenant screening or renewing their own membership for each new member (unless they were members during the past two years) they refer to AAGLA. That's more than the cost of our popular QuadCheck tenant screening package (priced at only $22 — Less if you do it on line), which features two major agency credit reports, an eviction report and a bad checks report.
Meanwhile, our new ONE-HALF-OFF new-member drive will feature a half-price discount ($54 instead of $109) for the first year's basic annual dues for new members who join and are not current AAGLA members, or have dropped AAGLA membership within the last two years, about when the recession started. As fellow victims, we understand that some AAGLA members, hard-hit by this brutal recession, had to drop their AAGLA membership as they struggled just to survive. We want you back.
In case you forgot, or weren't aware, AAGLA has added, and continues to add, new, valuable, member services to our benefits packages. Here's a recap on some of them.
Bad-Debt Reporting
Members can now report bad debt left by former renters by using the Landlord Record/Debt Reporting To the Credit Bureaus Form, and you can do it on a budget. Filing a report only costs $20. If someone skips out owing money, you have some recourse and can report them. Then, when they want to get credit down the road, you generally get paid the debt that is owed to you before their credit is approved.
Worker's Comp Insurance Program
We also now offer our members a cost-effective, and I mean really cost-effective, Worker's Comp Insurance Program through Jim Coady with ISU Derby & Associates Insurance. If you need Worker's Comp insurance, and everybody does, you should look into this relatively new member benefit and start saving today. Coady can be reached by phone at 800-926-4478 or fax at 626-335-2160.
NAA Affiliation Means More New Benefits
AAGLA is now officially affiliated with the National Apartment Association (NAA), which gives our association a national presence and provides AAGLA members with some all-new member benefits. See NAA Corner for details about one of them.
Free Vacancy Listing Service
Another burgeoning and popular new member service is AAGLA's free vacancy listing service on the internet. Call or email us for details on that.
And those are just some of our newer member benefits. We also continue to offer a broad range of time-tested traditional member services, including Free Legal Assistance, Low-cost Educational Seminars, Free Monthly Magazines (Apartment Age with current local coverage and Units on the national scene), Low-cost Tenant Screening, Potent Political Representation, Manager Training & Placement, Free Member Meetings, Website Savings, and Outstanding Vendor Referrals. Join today. Let the savings begin, because "Membership Doesn't Cost ‑ It Pays."
Meet the President
Incoming President Earle Vaughan is the second member of his family to serve as President, with his grandfather, Earle Vaughan, serving in that capacity in 1957.
Earle has been a Director of AAGLA for more than 10 years. During that time, he has faithfully served as Chair of AAGLA's Finance, Los Angeles Government Relations, State Legislative, and Publications Committees.
As AAGLA President, Earle's goals are to continue to have AAGLA monitor legal issues that affect the housing industry, taking action when necessary, and continue our legislative lobbying efforts on behalf of property owners at the local, state and national levels.
Earle also would like to see growth in membership in AAGLA, and expand benefits for AAGLA members through our association with the National Apartment Association (NAA). He also plans to establish a Water Subcommittee to examine how apartment owners can conserve water.
He is the third generation of his family to own and operate apartment buildings in Los Angeles, currently owning and managing 15 properties with his father, Russell, and his brother, Tyrone.
Earle earned a Bachelor of Science Degree at UCLA, and received a Masters Degree in Business Administration from California State University, Long Beach.
Professionally, Earle is an educator, and serves as the Area Manager for Page Private Schools, a business founded by his great-grandparents in 1908, over 100 years ago. Page Private Schools are non-sectarian schools with four campuses in the Southern California area and two in Florida.
He believes strongly in giving back to the community and participating in community service. His volunteer work includes serving as a Past President and current member of the Board of Directors of the Hollywood Boys and Girls Club. He is also a current director of the organization's foundation.
Earle is also an active member and the Past President of the Wilshire Rotary Club, a past Assistant District Governor of Rotary District Number 5280, the governing body for 46 Los Angeles area Rotary Clubs in that district, and served as the district's Literacy Chair for the past two years. Rotary's motto is "Service Above Self."
He also is the Past President and a current director of the Larchmont Blvd. Association, a local business group in the Hancock Park area. His other interests include daily exercise, boating, and UCLA football and basketball. Earle lives in Beverly Hills with his wife, Theresa, and their daughter, Sophia.
