As rents keep going up in Seattle, the city council voted Monday to put a one-year hold on rent bidding apps which can allow landlords to auction rentals to the highest bidder.
The bill from Councilmember Teresa Mosqueda, which was approved 8-0, is aimed at allowing the city to study the impact of the apps as they relate to the city's fair housing laws. One of those laws mentioned by the city council in a press release is the "First in Time" law, which requires landlords to accept the first qualified applicant.
New platforms like Rentberry allow landlords to list properties and potential renters can submit bids. They set a price they'd be willing to pay, and a property owner can accept or reject that.
Rentberry says it offers flexibility, transparency and the ability to save money. It says its technology levels the playing field by showing applicants current offers on properties, so they can make educated decisions on how much they are willing to pay for a home, all without the burden of multiple costly applications.
The Associated Students of the University of Washington approached Mosqueda with concerns about the apps, leading to the legislation.
“Technology, in general, especially when it intersects with profitable things like housing, moves a mile a minute, and government kind of needs to get ahead of that,” Alexander Novokhodko, a student who serves in the UW student senate, told KING 5 last month.
