San Mateo REALTORS® Help Half Moon Bay Reverse a Failed Rent Control Experiment

The Community Challenge

Half Moon Bay, California is a small coastal city of just over 13,000 residents located in San Mateo County, which has one of the most expensive housing markets in the country. While affordability pressures were real, the city faced deeper, structural challenges: limited housing supply, high regulatory barriers to new construction, and rising operating costs for small housing providers. 

In response to growing concern about affordability, a prior city council enacted strict local rent control and a mandatory rental registry. The policies went beyond California’s existing statewide rent stabilization law and were adopted quickly, without clearly defined goals or performance benchmarks. 

Instead of stabilizing the market, the programs produced unintended consequences. Small housing providers struggled to comply with new regulations and fees. Program costs ballooned, city staff capacity was strained, and rental units quietly began leaving the market, putting even more pressure on housing availability. 

Why REALTORS® Stepped In

The San Mateo County Association of REALTORS® saw firsthand how the policies were affecting their clients and their community. Members heard from small property owners who could no longer cover rising expenses and would‑be buyers walking away from transactions because regulated rents made properties financially unworkable. 

At the same time, REALTORS® understood that rent control does not address the root causes of housing affordability. As NAR has consistently emphasized, true affordability depends on increasing housing supply, reducing excessive regulation, and supporting targeted assistance for those who need it most, not broad policies that discourage investment and shrink inventory. 

After years of hostile policies, the San Mateo County Association of REALTORS® helped elect two new moderate, data‑driven city council members in 2024, and then launched a focused effort to revisit and repeal the failed programs. 

What Changed Because They Did

REALTORS® pursued a disciplined, relationship‑based advocacy strategy grounded in data, local experience, and constructive solutions. 

They worked early during election cycles to support candidates open to balanced housing policy. Once new leaders were seated, the association engaged in sustained, old‑fashioned lobbying: meeting repeatedly with council members, the mayor, city staff, and the city manager. 

REALTORS® brought data: 

• Financial data showing the programs were operating at a deficit, costing taxpayers roughly $250,000 and draining funds originally dedicated to housing affordability. 

• Real‑world examples demonstrating that small rental properties were being sold or removed from the market altogether. 

• Carrying‑cost analysis illustrating that utilities, insurance, taxes, maintenance, and mortgages made the city’s rent caps unsustainable, particularly for owners of 1-4 unit properties. 

• Administrative and cybersecurity concerns tied to the rental registry, which required collection of sensitive personal and business data while duplicating information already available through existing market tools. 

REALTORS® also mobilized members and affected property owners using NAR’s Advocacy Everywhere platform, targeted outreach, newsletters, and coordinated letters to elected officials ensuring policymakers heard directly from constituents most impacted by the rules. 

Crucially, REALTORS® paired their critique with solutions. They highlighted more than 20 existing nonprofit and government programs already providing tenant protections such as mediation, legal aid, translation services, and emergency rental assistance. They advocated for education around existing state law and for targeted, temporary assistance programs that address nonpayment—identified as a leading cause of evictions—without reducing housing supply. 

In March 2026, the Half Moon Bay City Council voted 3–2 to repeal both rent control and the rental registry, marking a rare reversal of such policies in California. The decision set the stage for a shift toward community education, targeted assistance, and policies aligned with state law.  “This marks a meaningful shift from broad, punitive regulation to focused, effective support,” said Fernando Peña, SAMCAR Government Affairs Director. 

Why This Matters for Associations

Even when rent control policies are already in place, they are not irreversible. REALTOR® associations can play a decisive role by staying engaged after adoption, monitoring program outcomes, electing more supportive candidates, and using credible data to demonstrate when policies fail to meet their goals. 

It also reinforces a core REALTOR® message: protecting housing affordability requires expanding supply and supporting effective, targeted solutions—not imposing one‑size‑fits‑all regulations that drive housing out of the market. 

By building relationships, staying solution‑oriented, and centering real community impacts, associations can move the conversation from ideology to outcomes—and help their communities choose policies that truly work.