Krim v. Severance

WOOD (Parker), J. Action, under the provisions of the Federal Housing and Rent Act, to recover alleged overcharges paid as rental for residential property. Plaintiff appeals from the judgment for defendant.

On July 12, 1948, the plaintiff and defendant entered into a written lease whereby plaintiff leased from defendant a nine-room furnished dwelling house at 10734 Lindbrook [354]A.venue, Los Angeles, for 18 months, commencing July 24, 1948, and ending January 24, 1950, at a monthly rental of $250. The lease also provided that defendant (owner) would pay for gardening service. Plaintiff occupied the property until March 24, 1950, and paid said agreed amount of rental.

Under the provisions of the Emergency Price Control Act of 1942, the maximum rental fixed by the rent director for said house, unfurnished and without gardening service, was $125 per month. An amendment of said Price Control Act of 1942, being section 202(c) (3), provided in effect that housing accommodations which were not rented for 24 consecutive months during the period commencing February 1, 1945, were not controlled housing accommodations. The house involved here was owner-occupied from December 3, 1943 to December 1, 1947. On December 18, 1947, the rent director, upon application by the owner, made an order approving decontrol of the house. (The Emergency Price Control Act of 1942 was superseded by the Housing and Rent Act which became effective July 1, 1947.)

At the time the lease was made (July 12, 1948), the renting of said property was not controlled by the provisions of the Housing and Rent Act, and the defendant was not restricted by law as to the amount of money that she might charge for the use of the property. On April 1, 1949, the Housing and Rent Act of 1949 become effective, and under the provisions thereof the renting of said property was re-controlled.

In January, 1950, plaintiff asked defendant why she had not applied for “a ceiling on the furnished price of the house. ’ ’ Defendant replied that the house was not under control and there was no ceiling on it. In January and in February, 1950, plaintiff sent a letter to defendant asking her to apply for an adjustment of the rental of said premises as a furnished housing accommodation. Defendant testified (on cross-examination by plaintiff’s counsel) that she attempted to get a ceiling on the furnished house, and that two men in the rent control office told her “not to set any ceiling on it.”