Title
Amending Chapter 9-800 ("Landlord and Tenant") to add prohibitions and penalties related to anti-competitive rental practices, all under certain terms and conditions.
Body
THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA HEREBY ORDAINS:
SECTION 1. Title 9 of The Philadelphia Code is hereby amended to read as follows:
TITLE 9. REGULATION OF BUSINESSES, TRADES AND PROFESSIONS
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CHAPTER 9-800. LANDLORD AND TENANT
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? 9-802. Definitions.
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(5) Unfair Rental Practice. Any act in violation of Section 9-804 or Section 9-809.
(6) Price Coordination. Engaging in both of the following acts: (a) collecting historical or contemporaneous information concerning prices, price changes, supply levels, occupancy rates, or lease or rental contract termination and renewal dates of residential rental units from two or more real estate lessors or from public databases, including when monetary or other valuable consideration is paid to acquire or collect such information; and (b) recommending or suggesting rental prices, fees, rental terms, or occupancy levels to a real estate lessor based on such information, including when such recommendation involves the analysis or processing of information using a computational, or algorithmic system, software, or process. Price coordination does not include (i) providing information for the purpose of establishing rent or income limits in accordance with the affordable housing program guidelines of a governmental entity; or (ii) recommending, advocating, or requiring affordable housing restrictions, including affordable housing set-asides, in which the rental price of all or a portion of the residential rental units owned or managed by a real estate lessor are capped to ensure affordability for residents earning less than the area median income; or (iii) publishing information about average rental prices, typical rental terms, or estimated rental values when such publication is accessible to the general public and does...
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