Introduction

The Isla Vista Tenants Union‘s mission is to empower the tenants of Isla Vista through education, advocacy, and grassroots organizing, as well as promoting tenant interests and act against violations of tenants’ rights.

The IVTU office staff is well informed and welcomes drop-in questions every weekday. IVTU case managers work directly with students to mediate conflicts with landlords. In most cases these conflicts arise over refunding of security deposits. This is why IVTU strongly recommends that students make a video of their living quarters when they move in and then again at move out. As IVTU Chair Kelly Yazdi told The Bottom Line, “It empowers you as a tenant to have tangible, or ‘written,’ documentation of the condition of your unit in case legal issues arise in terms of your security deposit.” Its important to document every single scuff, scratch, and stain prior to move in, since otherwise you might be blamed for damage done by previous tenants. It’s also critical for students to read their lease documents closely and make sure they understand them before they sign them.

Website Updated

To help make information accessible, the IVTU website received a long anticipated updating. The new site is easy to navigate and includes a wealth of information regarding rentals. More new features are in the works.

IV Theater Forum

Up close and personal, IVTU hosted a forum in IV Theater, to discuss topics ranging from being a good tenant to managing paperwork, and everything in between, including how to negotiate with your housemates if there are conflicts.

Rental Housing Roundtable

IVTU actively participates in the local Rental Housing Roundtable. IVTU also helped sponsor a UCSB DJ Club event at which IVTU representatives handed out fliers and answered questions.