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Becoming a landlord in California goes just beyond finding a qualified tenant to fill your vacant rental units. You’ll also need to familiarize yourself with the California landlord-tenant laws, among other things. The state’s landlord-tenant law is enshrined under the California Civil Code 1940-1954.06. It stipulates what landlords can and cannot do in all their interactions with the tenant. From your unit’s habitability standards and repair responsibilities, to eviction rules, rent increase laws, and everything in between.
In today’s blog, we’ll walk landlords through all the California landlord-tenant laws’ basics to help them stay informed.
Tenants in California are granted the following rights once they have established a rental agreement with a landlord. Under the California landlord-tenant laws, the they a right to:
California tenants are required to do the following when renting out a property:
California landlord-tenant law grants landlords certain rights and responsibilities. Some include a right to:
As for legally mandated responsibilities under the state's landlord-tenant laws, a landlord must:
Here’s a general overview of California’s landlord-tenant laws that property owners need to familiarize themselves with:
When renting out a property in California under the state's landlord-tenant laws, landlords are required to provide their residential tenants with certain crucial information. Landlords must this do before the tenant signs the rental agreement. The disclosures under California law include the following:
Landlords can enter a California tenant occupied unit for various legitimate purposes under the state's rental laws, like to make necessary or agreed upon maintenance, or to show the home to prospective buyers. But besides having a legitimate reason for entry, California landlords must also notify the tenant beforehand. The state’s landlord-tenant law advices the written notice must be at least 24 hours before the intended entry. Emergency situations are exempt from the written notice requirements.
The Fair Housing Act requires that California landlords treat all tenant equally based on federally and state protected classes. They include race, color, nationality, religion, disability, familial status, marital status, and sex. Others protected classes are primary language, immigration status, citizenship status, source of income, ancestry, and gender identity/expression.
Some parts of California have some form of a local rent control ordinance in place that affect certain rental properties. It requires California landlords to abide by certain rules when raising rent. Some of the rules include the following:
As a California landlord, you reserve the right to evict a tenant from your rental property. The reason must, however, be legitimate. Examples of such reasons under California law include the following:
For expert help in managing your rental property, you may want to consider American Heritage Properties. We offer quality property management services to property owners across the San Diego, CA area. Get in touch to get started right away!
Disclaimer: Please note that the information provided in this blog is intended for general guidance and should not be considered as a replacement for professional legal advice. It is important to be aware that laws pertaining to property management may change, rendering this information outdated by the time you read it.
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