California Landlord-Tenant Law Guide

How much you can collect

• General cap: one month’s rent, in addition to the first month’s rent, whether or not the unit is furnished. This came from AB 12 and applies to security collected on or after July 1, 2024 (Civ. Code § 1950.5(c)(1), (c)(6)).
• Small-landlord exception: up to two months’ rent if the landlord is a natural person (or an LLC whose members are all natural persons, or a qualifying family trust) and owns no more than two residential rental properties with no more than four units offered for rent in total (§ 1950.5(c)(5)).
• Service members: the two-month exception never applies to a service member, and you cannot refuse to rent to a service member because of that limit.
• Everything counts: “security” includes any fee or charge collected at the start of the tenancy other than the first month’s rent and a screening fee under § 1950.6, including “cleaning” or “move-in” fees. A lease may not call any part of the deposit “nonrefundable” (§ 1950.5(n)).

What you can deduct

Only amounts reasonably necessary for unpaid rent, repair of damage beyond ordinary wear and tear caused by the tenant or their guests, cleaning needed to return the unit to its move-in level of cleanliness, and (if the lease allows) replacing personal property. You cannot charge for conditions that existed before the tenancy or for the cumulative effect of ordinary wear and tear, and professional carpet cleaning is only chargeable if it is actually needed to restore move-in condition (§ 1950.5(b), (e)).

Move-out steps and the 21-day deadline

• Pre-move-out inspection: once either side gives notice to end the tenancy, tell the tenant in writing that they may request an initial inspection, held no earlier than two weeks before move-out with 48 hours’ written notice, so they can fix problems first (§ 1950.5(f)).
• Photos: for tenancies starting on or after July 1, 2025, photograph the unit at move-in. Since April 1, 2025, photograph it after the tenant returns possession (before repairs or cleaning you plan to deduct for) and again after the work is done (§ 1950.5(g)).
• 21 calendar days: return the balance with an itemized statement no later than 21 days after the tenant vacates (§ 1950.5(h)). Include invoices or receipts, or your time and hourly rate if you did the work yourself, plus the photos. If total repair and cleaning deductions are $125 or less, the receipts are not required unless the tenant asks within 14 days.
• Electronic payment: if the tenant paid the deposit or rent electronically, return the deposit electronically to an account the tenant designates in writing, unless you agreed in writing on another method (§ 1950.5(h)(1)(A)(ii), as amended by AB 414, effective January 1, 2026).
• Penalty: bad-faith retention can lead to statutory damages of up to twice the deposit on top of actual damages, and you carry the burden of proving your deductions were reasonable (§ 1950.5(m)).
• Interest: state law does not require interest on deposits, but some cities do. See our security deposit interest guide.

The cap

• Limit: over any 12-month period, rent may not rise more than 5% plus the percentage change in the regional CPI, or 10%, whichever is lower, measured from the lowest rent charged in the previous 12 months (Civ. Code § 1947.12(a)). Accepted discounts and concessions are excluded when finding the lowest rent.
• Two increments: a sitting tenant’s rent can be raised in no more than two steps in a 12-month period.
• Vacancy reset: when no prior tenant remains, you may set the new starting rent freely; the cap applies to later increases.
• Which CPI: the CPI-U for the property’s metro area (Los Angeles, Riverside, San Diego, San Francisco) or the California CPI where no metro index exists. For increases effective August 1 or later, use the April-to-April change of that year; before August 1, use the prior year’s April-to-April change. Round to the nearest tenth of a percent.
• Sunset: the section is scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2030 unless extended.
• Overcharges: tenants can recover excess rent and, for willful violations, up to three times the overcharge.

Exemptions

• Housing issued a certificate of occupancy within the previous 15 years (a rolling window, not a fixed year).
• A single-family home or condo that can be sold separately, if the owner is not a REIT, a corporation, or an LLC with a corporate member, and the tenant received the exact written exemption notice in § 1947.12(d)(5). For tenancies starting or renewed on or after July 1, 2020, that notice must be in the lease. No notice, no exemption.
• A duplex where the owner lived in one unit at the start of the tenancy and still does (neither unit an ADU or JADU).
• Deed-restricted affordable housing, school and university dormitories, and units under a local rent control ordinance that is stricter.

Rent increase notice (Civil Code § 827)

• 30 days: for an increase of 10% or less (counting all increases in the prior 12 months).
• 90 days: for an increase of more than 10%, which in practice only applies to units exempt from the cap (Civ. Code § 827(b)).
• Section 827 lets you deliver the notice personally or by mail; mailed notices are subject to Code of Civil Procedure § 1013, which extends the period, so allow extra time. Our rent increase templates help with wording.

Local rent control

Many cities, including Los Angeles, San Francisco and Oakland, have rent stabilization ordinances. Where a local ordinance restricts increases more tightly than state law, the local rule governs that unit. Local ordinances can also require registration, relocation payments or specific notice forms, so check with the city’s housing department before raising rent or ending a tenancy.

After all tenants have continuously and lawfully occupied a unit for 12 months, or any one tenant for 24 months, the owner may end the tenancy only for just cause, and the cause must be stated in the written notice (Civ. Code § 1946.2(a)). The exemptions largely mirror the rent cap: newer buildings (15-year rolling), qualifying single-family homes and condos with the written exemption notice, owner-occupied duplexes, owner-occupied homes where the tenant shares a kitchen or bathroom with the owner, and others.

• At-fault causes include nonpayment of rent, breach of a material lease term, nuisance, waste, criminal activity on the property, unlawful subletting, refusing lawful entry, and refusing to sign a similar renewal lease. For a curable violation you must first give a notice to cure (§ 1946.2(c)).
• No-fault causes are owner or family move-in, withdrawal from the rental market, a government order to vacate, and demolition or substantial remodel (work requiring the tenant to leave for at least 30 days, not cosmetic upgrades).
• Relocation for no-fault: pay the tenant one month’s rent within 15 days of serving notice, or waive the final month’s rent in writing. The notice must tell the tenant about this right. Getting this wrong voids the notice (§ 1946.2(d)).
• Required tenant notice: covered tenancies must receive the statutory notice about §§ 1947.12 and 1946.2 in at least 12-point type (§ 1946.2(f)).
• Local ordinances: where a city has its own just cause ordinance (adopted before September 1, 2019, or later and more protective), the local ordinance applies instead.

Ending a tenancy that is not covered

For an exempt month-to-month tenancy, Civil Code § 1946.1 requires at least 60 days’ written notice if the tenant has lived there a year or more, and 30 days if less than a year. A 30-day notice is also allowed in a narrow sale situation: a separately alienable unit, an opened escrow, a buyer who is a natural person intending to live there for a year, and notice within 120 days of opening escrow.

A landlord must keep a rental fit for occupation and repair conditions that make it untenantable (Civ. Code § 1941). Section 1941.1 lists what a habitable unit must have, including:

• Effective waterproofing and weather protection, with unbroken windows and doors
• Working plumbing, gas, heating and electrical systems that met code when installed
• Hot and cold running water connected to an approved sewage system
• Clean, sanitary premises free of debris, rodents and vermin at the start of the tenancy, and adequate trash receptacles
• Floors, stairways and railings in good repair
• New for 2026: for leases entered into, amended or extended on or after January 1, 2026, a working stove and refrigerator (AB 628). A tenant may choose to supply their own refrigerator through a specific lease clause, and recalled appliances must be repaired or replaced within 30 days of notice.

Repair and deduct

If you do not fix an untenantable condition within a reasonable time after written or oral notice, the tenant may pay for the repair and deduct it from rent, up to one month’s rent, no more than twice in any 12-month period, or move out and stop owing rent (Civ. Code § 1942). Acting after 30 days is presumed reasonable, but a shorter period can be reasonable for urgent problems. The remedy is not available if the tenant caused the condition.

Three-day notices (CCP § 1161)

• Pay rent or quit: three days, excluding Saturdays, Sundays and judicial holidays. The notice must state the amount due and the name, phone number and address of the person to pay (with days and hours if payment can be made in person), or bank or electronic payment details (Code Civ. Proc. § 1161(2)).
• Perform or quit: three days (again excluding weekends and judicial holidays) to cure a breach of another lease term; no cure notice is needed if the breach cannot be cured.
• Quit: three days’ notice for nuisance, waste, unlawful use or unlawful subletting.
• No fees: since February 1, 2025, you cannot charge a tenant a fee for serving or posting a notice.

The court case

1. 1. Serve a notice that is valid on its face, including the just cause statement and any relocation notice if the unit is covered.
2. 2. If the tenant does not comply, file an unlawful detainer complaint in superior court.
3. 3. The tenant has 10 days after service, excluding weekends and judicial holidays, to respond (Code Civ. Proc. § 1167, as amended effective January 1, 2025).
4. 4. If the landlord wins at trial or by default, the court issues a judgment and writ of possession.
5. 5. The sheriff, not the landlord, carries out the removal.

A defective notice usually means starting over, so many landlords have an attorney review notices before serving them. To estimate what a case could cost in lost rent and fees, use the eviction cost calculator.

Selling does not end a lease. The buyer takes the property subject to the existing tenancy and steps into your role as landlord, with the same rent cap and just cause limits if the unit is covered. Plan for these points before listing:

• Showings: follow § 1954. A written for-sale notice lets you give oral 24-hour notice for buyer showings for 120 days.
• Deposit transfer: on sale you must, within a reasonable time, either transfer the remaining deposit to the buyer and notify the tenant (by personal delivery or first-class mail) of the transfer, any claims, the amount, and the buyer’s name, address and phone number, or return it to the tenant with an accounting (Civ. Code § 1950.5(i)). Before closing, give the buyer a written statement of the deposit, any deductions and which option you chose (§ 1950.5(j)). If you skip this, the buyer becomes jointly liable with you (§ 1950.5(k)). Note that this rule was formerly lettered subdivision (g); it is now (i).
• Buyer move-in: owner move-in is a no-fault just cause, but the intended occupant must be the owner (a natural person with at least a 25% recorded interest, or as otherwise defined) or a listed family member, must move in within 90 days and stay 12 months, and the notice must name them. For leases entered into on or after July 1, 2020, the tenant must agree in writing or the lease must contain an owner move-in clause. Relocation of one month’s rent still applies (§ 1946.2(b)(2)(A), (d)).
• Exempt month-to-month units: the 30-day sale notice under § 1946.1(d) is available only in the narrow circumstances listed there; otherwise the 60-day rule applies.
• Local rules: cities with their own just cause ordinances often add higher relocation payments and limits on owner move-in. Check before you promise a buyer vacant possession.