California Landlord-Tenant Laws

Security Deposits

Capped at one month's rent since July 2024 (AB 12), with a 21-day return deadline and an itemization/receipts regime that courts enforce closely.

Since July 1, 2024, AB 12 caps security deposits at one month's rent regardless of whether the unit is furnished. A narrow exception allows two months when the landlord is a natural person (or family LLC) owning no more than two residential rental properties totaling four or fewer units — but the exception never applies to active-duty servicemember tenants. Deposits collected before the effective date weren't required to be refunded down to the cap.

Within 21 calendar days of move-out you must return the deposit or send an itemized statement plus the balance. Deductions over $125 must be backed by receipts or invoices; if repairs aren't finished within the 21 days, you may send a good-faith estimate and follow up with receipts within 14 days of completion. Tenants can request an initial move-out inspection up to two weeks before the end of tenancy — you must offer it, and the itemized repair list from that inspection frames what you can later deduct.

Deductions are limited to unpaid rent, cleaning to return the unit to move-in cleanliness, repair of damage beyond ordinary wear and tear, and — if the lease allows — restoring personal property. Bad-faith retention exposes you to statutory damages of up to twice the deposit on top of the amount owed.

Rent & Late Fees

AB 1482 caps annual increases at 5% plus regional CPI (10% absolute max) for covered units, and late fees must be defensible as liquidated damages.

For covered units, AB 1482 limits rent increases in any 12-month period to 5% plus the regional CPI change, with an absolute ceiling of 10% — the applicable percentage resets each August 1. Exemptions include housing built within the last 15 years (rolling) and single-family homes owned by individuals (not REITs or corporations), provided the required exemption language appears in the lease. Cities with their own rent stabilization (Los Angeles, San Francisco, and many others) impose lower caps that control over the state law.

California has no statutory late-fee schedule; instead, a late fee is only enforceable as a liquidated-damages clause — a reasonable pre-estimate of the actual cost the late payment imposes. Percentage-based fees in the low single digits with a grace period are commonly sustained; fees a court reads as penalties are struck entirely. Increases of more than 10% require 90 days' notice; smaller increases require 30 days.

Lease Requirements & Disclosures

California has the longest mandatory-disclosure list in the country — miss one and lease enforcement gets harder.

Written leases are standard practice, and several clauses are mandatory for exemptions and protections to apply — notably the AB 1482 exemption language for qualifying single-family homes. The disclosure list is long; the most commonly applicable items:

• Lead-based paint (federal, pre-1978 housing).
• Bed bug information and reporting procedures.
• Mold disclosure when the landlord knows of a condition.
• Registered sex-offender database (Megan's Law) notice.
• Flood-zone disclosure when the landlord has actual knowledge.
• Shared utilities arrangements and how costs are allocated.
• Demolition permits, military ordnance proximity, and pest-control contracts where applicable.

Translation rules also apply: if the lease was negotiated primarily in Spanish, Chinese, Tagalog, Vietnamese, or Korean, the tenant must receive a written translation before signing.

Landlord Entry & Notice

24 hours' written notice for most entries, during business hours — one of the stricter entry statutes in the country.

Civil Code §1954 permits entry only for enumerated purposes — emergencies, repairs and improvements, showings to prospective tenants or buyers, the pre-move-out inspection, abandonment, or court order. Non-emergency entry requires reasonable advance written notice (24 hours is presumed reasonable) and must occur during normal business hours unless the tenant consents otherwise. Oral notice can suffice for showings if a for-sale notice was given within the prior 120 days.

Repeated abusive entries expose the landlord to statutory penalties and harassment claims under §1940.2 — document each entry's purpose, notice, and time.

Evictions

Three-day notices are counted in court days, most tenancies over 12 months require just cause to terminate, and city ordinances add layers.

Nonpayment evictions start with a three-day notice to pay rent or quit, with the three days counted in court days. The notice contents are technical — the exact amount owed (no more than 12 months back, no late fees), payee details, and payment method must all be right, and defective notices lose cases. The unlawful detainer that follows is a summary proceeding, but contested cases in major metros commonly run two to four months.

For tenancies covered by AB 1482 that have passed 12 months, termination requires just cause: at-fault grounds (nonpayment, breach, nuisance, criminal activity) or no-fault grounds (owner move-in, withdrawal from the market, substantial remodel, government order). No-fault terminations require one month's rent in relocation assistance or a final-month rent waiver. City just-cause ordinances (Los Angeles, San Francisco, and others) frequently expand these protections further.

Habitability & Repairs

The implied warranty of habitability is non-waivable, and tenants hold repair-and-deduct, withholding, and code-enforcement remedies.

California implies a warranty of habitability into every residential lease: effective waterproofing, plumbing, heat, hot water, electrical safety, clean common areas, garbage receptacles, and floors and railings in good repair, among the §1941.1 standards. The warranty can't be waived by lease.

After notice and a reasonable time (30 days is the outer presumption; urgent conditions much less), a tenant may repair and deduct up to one month's rent — usable at most twice in any 12 months — or vacate, or withhold rent for serious violations, with courts apportioning value in any ensuing case. Retaliating against a tenant within 180 days of a habitability complaint triggers a statutory retaliation presumption and fee exposure. Local code enforcement is active in most cities, and rent-escrow programs exist in some.

Termination & Renewal

30 or 60 days' notice for month-to-month terminations (when allowed at all), and 30/90 days for rent increases depending on size.

For tenancies not subject to just cause, a landlord may end a month-to-month tenancy with 30 days' written notice (60 days once the tenancy has run a year or more). Where AB 1482 or a local ordinance applies, these notices must also state a qualifying just-cause reason — the notice period alone isn't enough. Tenants owe 30 days regardless of tenancy length.

Fair Housing

FEHA goes well beyond federal law — including source-of-income protection that makes Section 8 refusal unlawful statewide.

California's Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) protects far more categories than federal law: race, color, national origin, religion, sex, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, marital status, familial status, disability, source of income, veteran status, ancestry, citizenship, primary language, and immigration status. Since 2020, source-of-income protection explicitly includes Section 8 vouchers — advertising 'No Section 8' is unlawful statewide.

Screening practices deserve special care: criminal-history policies must be individualized rather than blanket bans, and the Civil Rights Department actively tests advertising. Uniform written criteria, consistent application, and documented decisions are the core defense.