Hooshmand Law Group

Bay Area Tenants, if any of the following apply to you: You live in an in law / illegal / unpermitted unit; Recently received a 60 day notice; Your landlord told you to move / Changed the locks;... Your landlord said they plan to move into your apartment; Your landlord evicted you and is now renting your unit on Airbnb; You were forced to move due to bad conditions. Call or email us at Hooshmandlawgroup.com for a free consultation.

In Rent Controlled jurisdictions (San Francisco, Oakland and Berkeley) if your apartment is rent controlled (typically if built before 1979) remember that a landlord can only evict for very limited reasons (just cause protection). With just cause protection, a landlord cannot simply tell you to leave once your lease is up. As summer rolls around landlords try to find ways to evict and many times those evictions violate the protections against eviction. If you are ever faci...ng an eviction or if you have received a notice from a landlord it is important to contact an attorney to determine if the notice is valid. For example, San Francisco makes it a violation to "endeavor to recover possession" unless the landlord has one of the limited reasons to evict. Also, many times landlords claim their relative is moving in when in fact that is not the case. An attorney can help follow up to determine if the landlord is being honest. There are also many protections against harassment and other actions meant to force a tenant to leave. Even if you live in an unpermitted/illegal unit you might still be protected by rent control and the law prohibits the collection of rent for an illegal unit. When selecting an attorney, make sure they are committed to your case and that they plan on taking your matter all the way through to trial if that is required. See more

Hooshmand Law Group wins $594,000 judgment for tenants wrongfully evicted. In this case we represented a couple who had been evicted by their landlords so the landlord’s son could move in. The landlords used the relative move in section of the San Francisco Rent Ordinance. Our clients believed the landlords were being honest about their representation and intent and they moved, which was exceptionally difficult in the Bay Area rental market. Our clients ultimately were force...d to relocate to New York as a result of the eviction and associated difficulties. After our clients left their apartment, the landlord’s son immediately started renting out the landlord’s unit at the property on Airbnb and shortly thereafter started renting our clients’ apartment on Airbnb. Our clients did not know about these rentals until a reporter from NBC physically went to the property pursuant to their investigation into San Francisco evictions. NBC discovered the Airbnb guests as opposed to the Defendants’ son in the apartment. NBC then contacted our clients to ask them about the situation. After being alerted by NBC, our clients contacted us to discuss their options. We reviewed the case facts and determined that the couple had valid grounds for a lawsuit against the landlords for wrongful eviction, which we pursued vigorously. The case was eventually tried in front of a jury in San Francisco Superior Court. The landlords tried to raise many arguments all of which were rejected by the jury. After deliberating the jury found for our clients on every cause of action. Attorneys Mark Hooshmand, Tyson Redenbarger and Laura Flynn Strazzo worked on this case and successfully tried the case. See more

Mark Hooshmand and Tyson Redenbarger of Hooshmand Law Group secure $510,000 settlement for mother and son who had been wrongfully evicted from their home by a landlord in violation of the San Francisco Rent Ordinance. The landlord claimed his son intended to move in. The landlord deeded his son the required 25% so the son could proceed under an owner move in eviction, rather than a relative move in eviction. Our clients believed the landlords as to their intentions and our cl...ients moved out based on the eviction notice. Our clients watched the property and the landlord started renovations that took a very lengthy time. Our clients involved our firm shortly after their move out to discuss next steps. Based on further investigation, it appeared that the landlord did not intend to have their son move in, and we filed a lawsuit for damages based on the wrongful eviction. We proceeded to take discovery and depositions in an effort to determine the landlord’s true plans, since the property was a four-bedroom house, which was much more room than needed by their son. In discovery it was learned that the son was not living at the property while other individuals were. However, once the defendants learned of the lawsuit, they changed they behavior and the son began appearing at the property more often. In addition, the property was then rented out to new tenants with the son present, which constitutes an ulterior reason which is prohibited by the San Francisco Rent Ordinance which requires that the eviction be in good faith, without ulterior reason and with honest intent. We argued that the landlord did not act in good faith, that the son did not move in within the required 3 month time-frame, and that he was renovating the property to increase its value to charge more in rent and for possible sale. The case was settled shortly before trial at a judicial mediation. See more

Hooshmand Law Group is helping tenants to target wrongful evictions motivated by rising rents.

Hooshmand Law Group investigating landlords who cause tenants to move by falsely claiming that tenants need to move out due to sale of building, false owner move in efforts, and related evictions.

Hooshmand Law Group continues to work to protect affordable housing in the San Francisco Bay Area by defending evictions and assisting tenants with recovering damages for lack of heat, harassment, in law apartments, illegal apartments, demands to move out, and related problems.

Hooshmand Law Group is investigating damages suffered by consumers in California arising from wrongful business practices.

Hooshmand Law Group files class action lawsuit against AirBNB for damages created by facilitating rentals in prohibited apartment buildings in San Francisco.

Hooshmand Law Group wins appeal for tenant evicted by their landlord.