California Landlord-Tenant Handbook: Deposits, Rent Caps, and Just Cause

California landlord-tenant laws set some of the strictest residential rental rules in the country, covering security deposits, habitability, rent increases, evictions, discrimination, and retaliation. State law generally favors tenants, and landlords who skip required steps face statutory penalties that often exceed what compliance would have cost. Local rent control and tenant protection ordinances layer on top of the state rules in many cities, so the local ordinance controls whenever it is stricter than the state baseline.

Security Deposits

California caps security deposits at one month’s rent for most residential units, furnished or not. A narrow exception lets a landlord who is a natural person (or an LLC whose members are all natural persons) and who owns no more than two rental properties totaling four or fewer units charge up to two months’ rent.¹ The exception does not apply if the prospective tenant is a servicemember.

A landlord can deduct from the deposit for only four things: unpaid rent, cleaning the unit back to its move-in condition, repairing damage the tenant or their guests caused beyond normal wear and tear, and restoring the landlord’s personal property if the lease allows it.² Minor carpet wear and scuffed paint do not count as tenant damage.

Within 21 calendar days after move-out, the landlord must either send the full deposit back or provide a written, itemized statement explaining every deduction. If someone was hired for repairs, a copy of the bill must be included. If the landlord did the work, the statement must show what was done, the time spent, and the hourly rate. The itemization requirement is waived when deductions total $125 or less.² If repair work is not finished within 21 days, the landlord must send a good-faith estimate by that deadline, then follow up with the final statement and any remaining refund within 14 days of finishing.¹

A landlord who withholds the deposit in bad faith can be hit with statutory damages of up to twice the full deposit, on top of actual losses.¹ If a $2,000 deposit is improperly withheld in part, a court can award up to $4,000 in statutory damages plus the actual amount wrongfully kept. Tenants can bring these claims in small claims court without a lawyer.

Habitability and Tenant Remedies

Every residential lease in California carries an implied warranty of habitability that cannot be waived by agreement. The landlord must keep the unit safe and fit to live in throughout the tenancy.³

At a minimum, the unit must have:

Effective waterproofing of the roof and exterior walls, including unbroken windows and doors
Working plumbing and gas facilities maintained in good order
Hot and cold running water connected to an approved sewage system
A functioning heating system
Electrical lighting and wiring maintained in good working order
Working locks on doors and windows
Clean common areas free of pests and vermin
Floors, stairways, and railings in good repair

⁴

When a landlord fails to fix a habitability problem after notice, tenants have three remedies. The first is repair-and-deduct: hire someone, then subtract the cost from the next rent payment. After 30 days, a tenant is presumed to have waited long enough, though urgent problems like a broken heater in winter can justify acting sooner.⁵ The repair cost cannot exceed one month’s rent, and this remedy can be used only twice in any 12-month period.

The second is rent withholding for serious habitability failures. This one is riskier because it invites an eviction lawsuit, and losing means the tenant owes the withheld rent. The California Attorney General’s office warns tenants to seek legal advice before withholding.³

The third is abandonment. If conditions make the unit genuinely uninhabitable, a tenant can move out and stop paying rent, and is discharged from further rent obligations as of the date they leave.⁵

Rent Increases and the Statewide Rent Cap

The Tenant Protection Act of 2019 (AB 1482) caps annual rent increases for most residential properties at 5% plus the local Consumer Price Index change, or 10% total, whichever is lower.⁶ The cap is measured against the lowest rent charged during the prior 12 months. Where a local rent control ordinance is stricter, the local rule controls. The statewide cap is scheduled to expire on January 1, 2030.⁷

Several categories of housing fall outside the cap: units that received a certificate of occupancy within the previous 15 years on a rolling basis; single-family homes and condos, but only if the owner is not a corporation, REIT, or LLC with a corporate member and the tenant received a specific written notice of the exemption; owner-occupied duplexes; and deed-restricted affordable housing.⁶ The written notice requirement matters more than landlords often realize. A qualifying single-family home or condo is still treated as covered by the rent cap if the landlord never provided the exemption notice.

Advance written notice is required for every rent increase. Increases of 10% or less over any 12-month period require at least 30 days’ notice. Cumulative increases above 10% within a 12-month period require 90 days.⁸ An increase served without proper notice is unenforceable.

Ending a Tenancy: Just Cause and Notice Rules

Once a tenant has continuously occupied a unit for 12 months, or any tenant in the unit has been there 24 months, the landlord needs a legally recognized reason to end the tenancy.⁹ The same property exemptions that apply to the rent cap also apply to just cause.

At-fault reasons include failure to pay rent, breach of a material lease term after written notice to correct, criminal activity on the property or directed at the owner, subletting in violation of the lease, refusing to sign a renewal lease with similar terms, refusing lawful access, and using the unit for an unlawful purpose.⁹

No-fault reasons allow eviction when the tenant has done nothing wrong. These include the owner or a close family member moving into the unit for at least 12 months, withdrawing the unit from the rental market, and complying with a government order. For any no-fault termination, the landlord must provide relocation assistance equal to one month’s rent in effect when the notice is issued, or waive the final month’s rent.⁹ Skipping the relocation payment makes the termination notice defective.

The written notice a landlord serves depends on the reason:

Three-day notice to pay or quit for unpaid rent
Three-day notice to cure or quit for curable lease violations such as an unauthorized pet
30-day notice for month-to-month tenancies under one year not covered by just cause
60-day notice for no-fault terminations of tenancies protected by just cause
90-day notice for tenants with Section 8 housing vouchers

If the tenant does not comply, the landlord’s only legal option is to file an unlawful detainer lawsuit in Superior Court.¹⁰ After personal service, the tenant has 10 business days to file a written response.¹¹ No response means the landlord can request a default judgment; a response sends the case to an expedited trial.

Self-Help Evictions Are Illegal

Changing the locks, removing doors or windows, shutting off utilities, or hauling out a tenant’s belongings are all illegal. A landlord who does any of these things faces a penalty of at least $250 per violation, plus $100 for each day the violation continues, plus the tenant’s actual damages and attorney’s fees.¹² The tenant can also get a court order forcing the landlord to restore access. A week of illegal lockout alone runs $700 in statutory penalties before actual damages are counted.

Retaliation Protections

A landlord cannot punish a tenant for exercising legal rights. Reporting a habitability issue, filing a complaint with a government agency, or participating in a tenant organization are all protected activities, and the landlord cannot respond by raising the rent, cutting services, or trying to evict.¹³

The law creates a 180-day window. Any adverse action a landlord takes within 180 days of a complaint, inspection, or legal proceeding is presumed retaliatory, and the landlord bears the burden of proving a legitimate unrelated reason. Threatening to report a tenant to immigration authorities also counts as illegal retaliation.¹³ A landlord found to have retaliated faces actual damages, punitive damages between $100 and $2,000 per retaliatory act, and the tenant’s attorney’s fees. Tenants can invoke this protection once in any 12-month period and must be current on rent.

Fair Housing and Discrimination

The federal Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, familial status (having children under 18), and disability. California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act adds protections for sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, marital status, ancestry, age (over 40), medical condition, genetic information, military or veteran status, and several other categories.¹⁴ A California landlord cannot reject an applicant or treat a tenant differently based on any of these characteristics.

Discrimination does not have to be intentional. A screening policy that looks neutral can still produce unequal outcomes across protected groups, and courts can recognize these claims. Screening criteria should be tied to legitimate business needs and applied consistently.

Assistance Animals

Landlords must make reasonable accommodations for tenants with disabilities who need an assistance animal, even when the property has a no-pets policy. An assistance animal is not a pet: the category includes both trained service animals and animals that provide emotional support for a disability-related need.¹⁵ No pet deposit or pet fee may be charged for an assistance animal, and breed and weight restrictions that apply to pets do not apply.

A landlord may deny the request only in narrow circumstances: the specific animal poses a direct threat to others’ health or safety, granting the request would cause an undue financial burden, or it would fundamentally change the nature of the housing provider’s operations.¹⁵

Military Lease Termination

The federal Servicemembers Civil Relief Act lets active-duty military personnel end a residential lease early after receiving permanent change of station orders or deployment orders of 90 days or more. The servicemember delivers written notice with a copy of the orders, by hand, private carrier, or certified mail with return receipt.¹⁶

For monthly rent, termination takes effect 30 days after the next rent due date following the notice. Notice delivered on December 5 with rent due on the first ends the lease on February 1. Rent paid past that date must be refunded within 30 days. California’s standard 21-day deposit return timeline still applies after an SCRA termination.

Abandoned Property After Move-Out

Belongings left behind after a tenant vacates cannot simply be thrown out. The landlord must send the former tenant written notice describing the property, providing a place to claim it, and setting a reclamation deadline. If the notice is mailed, the tenant must have at least 18 days to claim the items.¹⁷

What happens after the deadline depends on estimated value. Items the landlord reasonably believes are worth less than $700 can be kept, sold, or disposed of. Items believed worth $700 or more must be sold at a public auction after published notice, with any proceeds beyond storage and sale costs held by the county for the former tenant to claim within one year.¹⁷ Skipping these steps and disposing of belongings immediately exposes the landlord to liability for the value of what was destroyed.

1
California Legislative Information. California Code Civil Code 1950.5
2
California Department of Justice. Know Your Rights as a California Tenant Security Deposits
3
California Department of Justice. Consumer Alert Know Your Rights as a California Tenant
4
California Legislative Information. California Code Civil Code 1941.1 – Untenantable Dwelling
5
California Legislative Information. California Civil Code 1942
6
California Legislative Information. California Code Civil Code 1947.12
7
California Legislative Information. AB-1482 Tenant Protection Act of 2019
8
California Legislative Information. California Code Civil Code 827
9
California Legislative Information. California Code Civil Code 1946.2
10
Judicial Branch of California. Eviction Cases in California
11
Superior Court of California, County of San Luis Obispo. Unlawful Detainer/Evictions
12
California Legislative Information. California Code Civil Code 789.3
13
California Legislative Information. California Code Civil Code 1942.5
14
California State Senate. Protected Classes
15
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Assistance Animals
16
U.S. Army. Servicemembers Civil Relief Act Lease Termination
17
California Legislative Information. California Code Civil Code 1984