Christopher Barta, Attorney at Law

Who Am I? My name is Christopher Barta. Born and raised in Minnesota, I currently live in Northern California. Over the last six years I’ve followed and written about the spread of “rent control” in the state of "Kalifornia". Now rent control is taking root in my home state of Minnesota(!) What is “rent control?” Although rent control traditionally meant capping how much a landlord can raise rent year-to-year, the term “rent control” has become the de-facto term for an ever-expanding slew of tenant protections. Rent control is the tip-of-the-wedge! Once rent control is established, it expands in two ways: 1.   Geographically: In California, big cities like San Francisco, Berkeley and Los Angeles have had rent control for years. But many smaller California cities adopted tenant protections, frequently by copying their neighbors. Finally in 2020 - the entire state became subject to rent control. 2.   Ever-increasing regulation: By necessity, regulation leads to ... more regulation! Rent caps lead to increased evictions, which leads to eviction controls, which leads to units being removed from the market, which leads to removal restrictions- and on and on(!) Tracking landlord compliance requires forced registration, and compliance can only be monitored by creating taxpayer-funded public boards and agencies. “But Chris-you’re in California. How can you help me?” I’ve been tracking, researching and writing about rent control for years from the epicenter of rent control - Oakland/Berkeley, California. Did you know that the entire Saint Paul rent control ordinance is literally cut and pasted from one paragraph of the Berkeley, California ordinance? In other words, when Saint Paul was figuring out how to implement rent control, they copied Berkeley verbatim! Now Saint Paul city leaders are claiming they “don’t know what to do next!” Hogwash! Here’ s how Berkeley operates its rent control program: •  A registration database and per-unit fees, with penalties for non-compliance; •  A bureaucratic nine-person “Rent Stabilization Board” that enacts regulations, hears ‘petitions and issues binding rulings'; •  A “Rent Stabilization Program” fully staffed by city employees; •  Etc, etc... Saint Paul copied the first paragraph of Berkeley’s regulatory scheme. Where do you think Saint Paul will look next? “OK, but…you’re in California”. FAQ: Zoom meeting, etc. what I can do. Don’t Re-act; Pro-act! LINK: For landlords: It’s hard to fight the spread of rent-control, but you can prepare to thrive in spite of it. You can wait and react step-by-step to the “Berklification” of Minneapolis and Saint Paul (and eventually the entire state), or you can anticipate where it’s going by knowing where its twin has been. I can help you get your leases in order and your rents adjusted to the proper levels. If you have bad tenants, I can help you evict them by walking you through the eviction process. If you have other issues I can help with those, too. LINK: For tenants: Knowledge is power! Use these new rights to your full advantage. I can help you communicate with your landlord, and -if worse comes to worse- prepare to fight in court. Click here FOR A FREE CONSULTATION (do this via submitted form). Christopher Barta, Esq. ℅ #8185 2136 Ford Parkway Saint Paul, MN 55116 ‪(952) 222-7809‬ And add Blog component. LINK for FEES My fees are determined by the type of representation you need. ​In order to determine your costs, please call me to discuss your case. My fees are generally on a "flat fee" basis rather than an hourly charge. There is absolutely no charge for a brief discussion to evaluate your legal issues. Q: Is there a way to add an “intake form” like this one? www.evict123.com/new-case

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