Table of Contents
The bad news...
The USCA Enables Poor Living Conditions and Illegal Activities
The good news...
The bad news...
The USCA Enables Poor Living Conditions and Illegal Activities
After experiencing the neglect and ghetto-like conditions of some USCA cooperatives, accompanied by frequent rent increases, it may surprise you to learn that the USCA is a multimillion dollar association.
The USCA has internal policies to deal with problems, but often disregards or covers up the complaints of individuals, especially complaints against employees or members networked into the management or administration. As a result, the USCA cooperatives and surrounding neighbors can be plagued by excessive noise, drug trafficking, secondhand smoke, coercion, and retaliation against individuals who complain.
In the late 1980's, five separate lawsuits motivated the USCA to shut down a cooperative called Barrington Hall, after the USCA's board of directors and its general manager, George Proper, had failed to take effectual action to control the drug trafficking, property damage, disturbances, and other long-term problems there.
Read an archived Daily Cal article about Barrington Hall (now known as Evans Manor) here.
According to a legal loophole in Paragraph 8 of the contract, the contract may be canceled (or not renewed) by the USCA for no reason prior to any given semester. The USCA and its law firm, Reeves & Seidler, represent this action as the expiration of a fixed-term lease, and utilize it as a prelude to eviction.
Most Berkeley residents are protected from ambiguous and unjust evictions by Berkeley's Rent Control Ordinance. The law prevents your landlord from evicting you unless:
You fail to pay legal rent
You violate the rental agreement
You willfully cause damage
You refuse to accept new rental agreement after old one expires (same terms in agreement)
You disturb other tenants
You refuse to allow landlord access after proper notice
The landlord wishes to demolish building
The landlord wants to move in self, child, or parent (Landlord must be 50% owner and the new person living there must stay for at least 6 months)
You fail to vacate under agreement of temporary rental agreement
The landlord wishes to make "housing code" repairs where you cannot live there while renovations are taking place
The preceding guidelines are known as Just Cause, meaning that there is a valid legal reason to evict you. Furthermore, the law requires landlords to prove their accusations in court in addition to alleging them. These rules prevent landlords from pursuing retaliatory and other illegal evictions against tenants and protect tenants from unscrupulous landlords.
Oddly enough, the USCA is exempt from Berkeley's Rent Control Ordinance
and can pursue an eviction without Just Cause.This peculiar legal exemption enables the USCA to strong-arm and intimidate tenants who challenge the status quo, and such discriminatory actions are not uncommon. How does it happen? First, tenant complaints and concerns may be discouraged, dismissed, or ignored. Tenants who exercise their right to persist in their complaints when the USCA refuses to take effectual action may then be ridiculed and labeled as troublemakers. Ultimately, the intimidation may cumulate with the threat of a membership/contract cancellation, which is the prelude to what would be an illegal, unjust, and retaliatory eviction for other Berkeley landlords.
How does the USCA maintain its peculiar legal exemptions? Perhaps it has something to do with political connections.
A former USCA Board of Directors President, Stefanie Bernay, serves as vice-chair of the Berkeley Rent Control Board.
A former USCA apartment manager, Kriss Worthington, serves as a city council member of District 7, which includes Rochdale Village, the USCA's largest co-op (formerly managed by Worthington) as well as Fenwick Weaver's Village and Le Chateau. [USCA Co-op Map] [Berkeley City Council]
The good news...
Get involved and demand accountability.
Community involvement is important. Let people know what is going on and what needs to change. Find out why the Berkeley City Council tolerates the USCA's tactics.
If you are a USCA member, you are eligible to be elected by your fellow residents to influential positions, including board of directors representative or council member, where you can work to safeguard rights and privileges. Many people seek these positions only for personal political gain, perpetuating USCA corruption, but a person of integrity and determination can make positive reforms. Even if you do not hold an elected position, remember that those who do are elected to serve you and to address your complaints, suggestions, and proposals.
Cancellation of memberships and other important decisions are often made behind closed doors, without the scrutiny of the general membership, house councils, or even the board of directors, which is supposed to oversee the general manager and all USCA operations. [USCA Organizational Chart] Do not naively or passively accept the assessments of management at the house or central level, or assume that the board of directors president has consulted the board of directors.
Elected officials who help subvert tenant and member rights and privileges by complicity in USCA corruption can be ousted or kept out of city government.
Find out where city officials stand on these issues and hold them accountable.
The Berkeley Police Department Is Often More Reliable Than USCA Management
Call the cops! Can't sleep or study because inconsiderate neighbors are blaring music or creating other problems and disturbances? If the USCA management doesn't think your complaints are important, get their attention by calling the police. The police will help enforce your right to peaceful enjoyment of the premises and can make reports to help you document the problems. See the Harassment page for their contact information and to find out what important information you should obtain from them.
This is the beginning of what the USCA and its attorneys really don't want USCA residents to know...how to level the playing field when the USCA retaliates against you for exercising your rights.
If You Contest a USCA Eviction in Court, Expect a Settlement and Dismissal of the Case against You
Following through on an eviction proceeding against a USCA resident is prohibitive for the USCA in terms of cost and time, particularly when the resident exercises the legal right to a jury trial. In fact, evicting a USCA resident can cost the USCA as much as $15,000 or more in legal and court fees! So, the threat of eviction is often part of a smokescreen of intimidation to scare or trick you into leaving without exercising your rights.
It gets even worse for the USCA. Juries are expensive and are likely to include tenants who can identify with or be sympathetic to your issue(s). Furthermore, many USCA residents are judgment-proof - have a limited income and few assets - and this makes it difficult or impossible for the USCA to recover any legal costs. If you are judgment-proof, the value of any eviction judgment against you will be equal to the current value of the piece of paper it is printed upon. But remember, it is highly unlikely that the USCA will follow through on its bluff to complete the expensive and lengthy legal proceedings required to get an eviction judgment against you, considering the rapidly diminishing returns.
As the case progresses, these conditions favor the resident and increase the pressure on the USCA to accept a settlement that typically includes dropping the entire case against you and extending your move out date by weeks or months - even if you would have eventually lost the case. Of course, if you refuse to settle and win your case the USCA cannot evict you. Later, if you choose, you can exercise another right to sue the USCA for free in small claims court (or in superior court if your claim is greater than $5,000) for breach of contract and/or other claims. In the meantime, maintain your documentation.
Disclaimer: This is pertinent information derived from public information sources and the actual experiences of USCA members. It is not legal advice.
Get more information from the perspective of an actual attorney for Berkeley landlords, Susan Luten, here.
You Can Live in the USCA for FREE While Contesting an Eviction
The legal eviction process, known as an unlawful detainer, begins shortly after your check-out deadline, when you receive a notice of unlawful detainer and respond to it within five days (or longer in special cases) by filing a short form called an answer with the court. At this point, you stop paying rent and you will not be bothered by the USCA, except to respond to an occasional legal notice. (Be sure to apply for a waiver of court costs and exercise your right to demand a jury trial at the appropriate times.)
As the USCA's costs continue to escalate, you can hold your rent payment(s) for one, two, or more months. No work shift hours or other member obligations, either. You even have the right to change the locks to keep management and future tenants out of your apartment, allowing access only to your guests, until your case is concluded. This further increases the pressure on the USCA to settle and dismiss the case against you. Remember, the USCA's eviction strategy hinges on expeditious proceedings and the tenant's gullibility. It is advantageous for the tenant to wait to file responses until a day or two before they are due, being careful not to miss any deadlines.
Disclaimer: This is pertinent information derived from public information sources and the actual experiences of USCA members. It is not legal advice.
