New Statewide Rent Control and Eviction Protections, effective Jan. 1, 2020

Effective Jan. 1, 2020, California's new statewide rent control (Civil Code 1947.12) and eviction protections (Civil Code 1946.2) will take effect. These two new schemes will only apply to cities without more restrictive rent control and eviction protections already in place.

For the new rent control scheme, landlords will be prohibited from raising the rent on tenants of more than 5 percent plus the change in the cost of living or 10 percent, whichever is lower. 

For the new eviction protection scheme, if the tenant has been residing at the leased residential unit for more than 12 months, landlord must have "just cause" for evictions.

"Just cause" includes:

• "At-fault" just causes:
  • Non-payment of rent;
  • Breach of material term of the lease;
  • Committing a nuisance;
  • Committing waste;
  • Failure of tenant to execute an extension/renewal of the lease based on similar terms;
  • Criminal/illegal activities committing by the tenant;
  • Assigning/subletting in violation of the lease;
  • Tenant's refusal to permit landlord's lawful entry request;
  • Failure to vacate by the employee/agent/licensee after their employment termination; 
  • Tenant's failure to vacate after tenant's own Civil Code 1946 notice to terminate tenancy;
• "No-fault" just cases:
  • Owner-move-in by the landlord;
  • Landlord's withdrawal of the leased property from the rental market (Ellis Act);
  • Landlord's need to comply with lawful order regarding the leased premises; and
  • Demolition or substantial rehabilitation of the leased premises.

For "no-fault" evictions, landlords must provide the tenant with relocation assistance equal to one month's rent or a written waiver of the final month of the tenancy.

For existing tenancies and new tenancies, the landlord needs to give written notice to the (existing or potential) tenant of these two new laws. (Civil Code 1946.2(F)).

There are certain exclusions and exemptions under these two new schemes. So, if you have any questions, feel free to contact us at 415-886-7103 or by email at swu@swulaw.com.