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D.C. Municipal Regulations (Last Updated: September 13, 2017) |
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Title 14. HOUSING |
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Chapter 14-38. COMMISSION OPERATIONS AND PROCEDURES |
Section 14-3899. DEFINITIONS
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3899.1The provisions of this chapter shall be applicable to chapters 38 through 44 of this title.
3899.2The following words and phrases shall have the meaning ascribed:
Act - the Rental Housing Act of 1985, D.C. Law 6-10, effective July 17, 1985, D.C. Official Code § 42-3501.01 et seq. (2001).
Annual fair market rent amount - the annualized sum of the rents collected for all rental units in the housing accommodation during the base calculation year, plus an amount equal to the percentage increase in the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) for all items, in the Washington, D.C. Standard Metropolitan Statistical Area, during each calendar year; provided, however, that if no rents were collected in the base calculation year because the housing accommodation was then under construction, the annual fair market rental amount shall be a sum equal to the rent which would have been collected during the base calculation year had the housing accommodation been 100% occupied during the entire base calculation year, the sum to be determined by appraisal, as increased by the Consumer Price Index increase under this paragraph.
Apartment improvement program - the program which is administered with grant funds from Title I of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974, approved August 22, 1974, 88 Stat. 633, 42 U.S.C. § 5301, by the District of Columbia Department of Housing and Community Development, developed by the National Neighborhood Reinvestment Corporation under the Neighborhood Reinvestment Corporation Act, approved October 31, 1978, 92 Stat. 2115, 42 U.S.C. § 8101, and operated under the supervision of the public-private Partnership Committee, which program has been established for the purpose of finding solutions to the economic and physical distress of moderate income rental apartment buildings by joining the tenants, housing provider, note holder, and District government in a collective effort.
Base calculation year - the calendar year immediately preceding the first calendar year in which a given housing accommodation is made subject to §§ 205(f) through 219 of the Act or any future District law limiting the amount of rent which can lawfully be demanded or received from a tenant.
Base rent - that rent legally charged or chargeable on April 30, 1985, for the rental unit which shall be the sum of the rent charged on September 1, 1983, and all rent increases authorized for that rent unit by prior rent control laws or any administrative decision issued under those laws, and any rent increases authorized by a court of competent jurisdiction.
Building improvement plan - the agreement executed between the parties of interest, including the tenants, housing provider, and the District government, at a property being treated under the apartment improvement program, which agreement sets forth the remedies to the property’s distress including, but not limited to, the following:
(a)A schedule of repairs and capital improvements which, at a minimum, will bring the property into substantial compliance with the housing regulations;
(b)A schedule of services and facilities; and
(c)A schedule of rent ceilings and rent increases; and which agreement is monitored by the District government until it expires upon completion of all physical improvements and other scheduled activities included therein.
Capital improvement - an improvement or renovation other than ordinary repair, replacement, or maintenance if the improvement or renovation is deemed depreciable under the Internal Revenue Code (26 U.S.C.).
Cooperative housing association - an association incorporated for the purpose of owning and operating residential real property in the District, the shareholders or members of which, by reason of their ownership of stock or membership certificate, a proprietary lease, or evidence of membership, are entitled to occupy a dwelling unit under the terms of a proprietary lease or occupancy agreement.
Council - the Council of the District of Columbia.
Division - the Rental Accommodations and Conversion Division.
Dormitory - any structure or building owned by an institution of higher education or private boarding school, in which at least ninety-five percent (95%) of the units are occupied by presently matriculated students of the institution of higher education or private boarding school.
Elderly tenant - a person who is sixty (60) years of age or older.
Equity - the portion of the assessed value of a housing accommodation that exceeds the total value of all encumbrances in the housing accommodation.
Housing accommodation - any structure or building in the District containing one (1) or more rental units and the land appurtenant thereto. The term “housing accommodation” does not include any hotel or inn with a valid certificate of occupancy or any structure, including any room in the structure, used primarily for transient occupancy and in which at least sixty percent (60%) of the rooms devoted to living quarters for tenants or guests were used for transient occupancy as of May 20, 1980. For the purposes of chapters 38 through 44 of this title, a rental unit shall be deemed to be used for transient occupancy only if the housing provider of the rental unit is subject to and pays the sales tax imposed by § 114(a)(3) of the District of Columbia Sales Tax Act, approved May 27, 1949 (63 Stat. 112; D.C. Official Code § 47-2001(n)(l)(c) (2001).
Housing provider - a landlord, owner, lessor, sublessor, assignee, or their agent, or any other person receiving or entitled to receive rents or benefits for the use or occupancy of any rental unit within a housing accommodation within the District.
Housing regulations - the most recent edition of the Housing Regulations of the District of Columbia, as established by Commissioners’ Order No. 55-1503, effective August 11, 1955.
Initial leasing period - that period for which the first tenant of a rental unit rents the rental unit. For units described in § 209 of the Act, chapter 42 of this title, the first tenant is the tenant who rents the rental unit immediately after the date it is first offered for rent as a rental unit which is not otherwise exempt from the Act.
Interest payments - the amount of interest paid during a reporting period on a mortgage or deed of trust on a housing accommodation.
Management fee - the amount paid to a managing agent and any pro rata salaries of off- site administrative personnel paid by the housing provider, if the duties of the personnel are connected with the operation of the housing accommodation.
Maximum possible rental income - the sum of the rents for all rental units in the housing accommodation, whether occupied or not, computed over a base period of the twelve (12) consecutive months within the fifteen (15) months preceding the date of any filing required or permitted under the Act.
Mayor - the Office of the Mayor of the District of Columbia.
Operating expenses - the expenses required for the operation of a housing accommodation for the twelve (12) consecutive months within the fifteen (15) months preceding the date of its use in any computation required by any provision of the Act and this title including, but not limited to, expenses for salaries of on-site personnel, supplies, painting, maintenance and repairs, utilities, professional fees, on-site offices and insurance.
Other income which is derived from the housing accommodation - any income, other than rents, which a housing provider earns because of his or her interest in a housing accommodation including, but not limited to, fees, commissions, income from vending machines, income from laundry facilities, and income from parking and recreational facilities.
Person - an individual, corporation, partnership, association, joint venture, business entity, or an organized group of individuals, and their respective successors and assignees.
Property taxes - the amount levied by the District of Columbia government for real property tax on a housing accommodation during a tax year.
Related facility - any facility, furnishing, or equipment made available to a tenant by a housing provider, the use of which is authorized by the payment of the rent charged for a rental unit, including any use of a kitchen, bath, laundry facility, parking facility, or the common use of any common room, yard, or other common area.
Related services - services provided by a housing provider, required by law or by the terms of a rental agreement, to a tenant in connection with the use and occupancy of a rental unit, including repairs, decorating and maintenance, the provision of light, heat, hot and cold water, air conditioning, telephone answering or elevator services, janitorial services, or the removal of trash and refuse.
Rent - the entire amount of money, money’s worth, benefit, bonus, or gratuity demanded, received, or charged by a housing provider as a condition of occupancy or use of a rental unit, its related services, and its related facilities.
Rental Accommodations Act of 1975 - the Rental Accommodations Act of 1975, D.C. Law 1-33, effective November 1, 1975.
Rental Housing Act of 1977 - the Rental Housing Act of 1977, D.C. Law 2-54, effective March 16, 1978.
Rental Housing Act of 1980 - the Rental Housing Act of 1980, D.C. Law 3-131, effective March 4, 1981.
Rental unit - any part of a housing accommodation as defined in § 4502.13 which is rented or offered for rent for residential occupancy and includes an apartment, efficiency apartment, room, single-family house and the land appurtenant thereto, suite of rooms, or duplex.
Rent ceiling - that amount defined in or computed under § 206 of the Act and chapter 42 of this title.
Substantial rehabilitation - any improvement to or renovation of a housing accommodation for which:
(a)The building permit was granted after January 31, 1973; and
(b)The total expenditure for the improvement or renovation equals or exceeds fifty percent (50%) of the assessed value of the housing accommodation before the rehabilitation.
Substantial violation - the presence of any housing condition, the existence of which violates the housing regulations, or any other statute or regulation relative to the condition of residential premises and may endanger or materially impair the health and safety of any tenant or person occupying the property.
Tenant - a tenant, subtenant, lessee, sublessee, or other person entitled to the possession, occupancy, or the benefits of any rental unit owned by another person.
Uncollected rent - the amount of rent and other charges due for at least thirty (30) days but not received from tenants at the time any statement, form, or petition is filed under the Act, and chapters 38 through 44 of this title.
Vacancy loss - the amount of rent not collectable due to vacant units in a housing accommodation. No amount shall be included as a vacancy loss for units occupied by a housing provider or his or her employees or otherwise not offered for rent.