One of the first organizations I joined after I started practicing law in 1986 was the Santa Clara County Bar Association (SCCBA). Founded over 100 years ago, the SCCBA has been a critical part of our local community, and a
As of July 1, 2025, California real estate is navigating key legislative changes impacting landlords, tenants, and property owners. Landlords will now be required to take photographs of rental units before a new tenancy begins, adding to existing requirements for
Since it has been several months since I last wrote in this blog about my own ADU project, it seemed that people might be curious to know where things stand. Also, reflecting general increased interest and activity in this
If you own commercial real estate in Santa Clara County, you recently received a mailing from the Assessor’s Office notifying you of the assessed value of your property. With your receipt of that notice, the clock is now ticking on
Many of us who live in California, especially the suburbs, are conditioned to expect free parking in the places we live, work, shop and take recreation. We expect laws to require it, builders to provide it and operators of commercial
As you may know, accessory dwelling units (“ADUs”) have been an interest of mine here for several years as one of the many ways that the California legislature has tried to address our housing shortage. For those of you
California law governing ADUs has been revised pursuant to two new “clean up measures”, SB 897 and AB 2221, which went into effect January 1, 2023. These new laws clarify and correct several different unforeseen barriers to the approval and
Over the last several years, a plethora of legislation has been adopted in Sacramento with the intention of spurring housing development in California in response to our housing crisis, with a number of these laws being previously noted in this
Last October, I had the privilege of attending the Real Estate Fall Gathering and Coppola Family Speaker Series, presented by the Fitzgerald Institute for Real Estate (“FIRE”) at my alma mater, the University of Notre Dame. FIRE was established
The California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”) has been a regular topic of discussion in this blog over the years, from challenges to local zoning bans against mobile medical marijuana dispensaries, to the expansion of the use of “categorical exemptions
