Well , hi everybody . I'm Bill Bateman , president of OSTA , the Oregon State Tenants Association , and this is an OSTA update Got a quick update on HB 3054A and that it has passed the House . It was a razor-thin vote . We even had some Democrats joining the no column , but the vote was successful . We squeaked out of the House and we're now headed toward the Senate . We have some meetings and as soon as we get those meetings completed those things will be happening . Tomorrow We'll get more information out to you so you can continue to support this measure
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Bill BatemanNow , one of the interesting side effects of this whole legislative process is that we're seeing some interesting tactics being used by the owners . One is a video that was mailed to several parks up north . We're going to attach a copy of that video to this program so you can actually see what was said firsthand , and I'm just absolutely blown away . There's a lot of what I feel are misleading and inappropriate claims and inappropriate tactics , but we went instead of my opinion , we took it a little farther and we're presenting a review of this video
. I'd like you to listen to this . We're going to go through it point by point and at the end we have a few closing points to make . This is regarding the video that is attached and the presentations of that ilk . There are several out that I have been made aware of , but this is specifically on the video that is attached to this program . The following is just the opinion of the author . Nothing here is intended to be legal advice . If you need legal advice , please consult with your own attorney . This is a response prepared by Matthew Johnson , attorney at law , to the accompanying video .
Bill BatemanOkay , first let's deal with the FALSE statements in this video . Number one the speaker says approximately 12 times you can only terminate this rental agreement with 60 days notice . This is FALSE . You can terminate this rental agreement , or any rental agreement , with only 30 days notice . So says ORS 90.620 . Now note the provisions and protections of the Oregon Landlord and Tenants Act always take precedence over any and all terms in a rental agreement . Now that means any provision in a rental agreement that is prohibited by law , interferes with , restricts or forgoes any of the rights or remedies of tenants granted in the law or contradicts the law , is prohibited and absolutely unenforceable . To that we look to ORS 90-220 and ORS 90-245 .
Bill BatemanPoint two the speaker says approximately nine times that the new buyer or owner must assume the rental agreement . Again , this is absolutely false . While a purchaser of the facility must assume the rental agreements of all the tenants , the opposite is not true . A new tenant requires a new agreement . The opposite is not true . A new tenant requires a new agreement . A new purchaser may assume the prior agreement at their own option . That's ORS 90-620 .
Bill BatemanPoint three when asked about the current 10% cap , the speaker said there is no such cap . That's completely false ORS 9600 . Point four he even claims that if the home burns down and the tenant brings in a new home , the agreement continues . Well , that's false . Like an insurance company saying if you replace your brand new Mercedes with the 30-year-old VW Bug , you're stuck with the same agreement and premiums . A different home would require a new and different agreement .
Bill BatemanPoint five One asks what happens if the law changes . The answer was the agreement remains in effect . The implication was that a change in law would not infect the enforceability of the agreement as signed . That's false . If the law changes , any part of the agreement that doesn't comply with the law becomes unenforceable . That's ORS 90-220 and ORS 90-245 . Point six the speaker says the new agreement creates no changes in the rules . Well , false . Many facility rules and regulations are contained in a document titled Park Rules and Regulations . That document does not contain all the rules and regulations in a facility . Many rules are in the rental agreement . They know that and we should all know this as well . Read your current agreement and then read the proposed rental agreement carefully . You can spot the rule changes . Those rules are changed by signing this agreement . Getting tenants to sign a new agreement is a tactic used by facility
owners as a way to change the rules and avoid the ORS 9610 process that requires a facility-wide vote on rule changes .
Bill BatemanNow let's turn to some of the misleading claims . Point 1 . The new agreement gives owners and I quote more stability and predictability . Close quotes , vacancy rates have only gone down in recent years . There are few businesses with such a dependable record of stability and guaranteed high rate of return . These agreements just give the owners more control over your lives . Controlling your life is their definition of stability and predictability . Point two the rent credit refund is free rent . There's nothing free about this . Tenants are signing these draconian agreements and giving up the stability of a month-to-month agreement . Despite the seeming temporary sounding term month month these agreements are essentially permanent , forever agreement with no end date that cannot be changed or terminated by a landlord without just cause or justification . This is better than an agreement that must be renegotiated periodically . Point three the speaker fails to mention the current overall 10% cap on all rent increases applies even under their new rental agreement .
Bill BatemanLet us look at ORS 90-600 . Point four they also insist that tenants sign a W-9 tax form . Now , a W-9 is for generated earned income . This is not generated and earned income and it is inappropriate and a possible violation of federal tax codes to claim it as such . This is not a business expense , it is merely income they have chosen to forego . It's like putting something on sale . You cannot claim the difference from the original price and the sales price as an expense . When you buy something on sale or get a refund , you don't sign a W-9 . This appears to be tax fraud .
Bill BatemanAnd finally , let's look at some of the high pressure tactics . Point one when asked about the some of the high pressure tactics Point 1 . When asked about the downside of signing , the speaker says there are none . This should probably be in the misleading claims section too . Point 2 . Tenants are given a very short term deadline and they say we don't know if we'll offer this again . This is a classic high pressure tactic . Point 3 . The speaker repeatedly says you don't have to sign , like they are being nice and could force tenants to sign if they wanted to , but they don't mention the law says you don't have to sign and they cannot force you to do that . Point four the speaker keeps repeating if you don't understand it , don't sign it . This is intended to make people feel dumb . Many folks have difficulty understanding complex contracts and they make these long and complicated for just that purpose . Folks will sign to prove they are not dumb . That's another common high-pressure tactics .
Bill BatemanWell , these are not all the issues that come up watching this video , just the most blatant lies misinformation and undue pressure tactics . I urge anyone faced with such a choice to reject the apparent short-term gains and consider the long-term consequences . Okay , that was the response . As mentioned , it is just the opinion of the author . Nothing here is intended to be legal advice . If you need legal advice , consult with your own attorney .
Bill BatemanWell , okay
, that's the review of the video and that is quite a lot to unpack . That's a little over three pages of concerns and I'm going to attach the document that I was presenting so you can review it on your own . What concerns me is the length people are going to take away your rights and to keep their hands in your pocket . There's much more to say about this , but I don't want to just go on and on . I want to be factual , I want to be accurate and I want you to be informed .
Bill BatemanSo please come back for another OSTA update . We'll be updating you on the bill which is moving into the Senate . That meeting will happen tomorrow , the 18th of April . I'll be attending and I'll report out on that as soon as the information is available . First and foremost , be advised . These are times that people are clawing and grasping to hang on to their hold on your pocketbook and your lives , and this is something you need to be aware of and we need to work together to put down You're up to date for now . We'll be reaching out again tomorrow . We'll have more information as it's available . Until then , be safe , be good to one another and we'll see you then . The preceding program was a presentation of Retired Guy Productions .