On Jan. 1, California landlords will experience a generational shift in the way they do business.

The most significant changes come from the implementation of Assembly Bill 1482, a statewide rent-gouging ban and “just cause” for eviction law that will give California the nation’s most stringent statewide tenant safeguards.

Other tenant protections starting New Year’s Day include a ban on blanket “No Section 8” policies, an increase in the noticing period for certain rent increases, and a lower security deposit requirement for active members of the U.S. military.

In the paragraphs that follow, we’ll summarize these new laws and other statewide policy shifts that will change the way rental housing providers operate in 2020.

We’ll also include links to compliance documents and background stories from the CAA website to help you follow these new laws as soon as the new year arrives.

For additional information about the laws summarized below, as well as other key legislation about to take effect, be sure to review our New Laws webinar, which also covers the shifting political dynamics in the state Legislature and some predictions for what to expect legislatively in the year to come.

Statewide rent cap and ‘just cause’

AB 1482 by Assemblyman David Chiu, D-San Francisco, will place an annual 5% plus CPI cap on rent increases and create new standards for evictions across California. The signing of AB 1482, officially the Tenant Protection Act of 2019, marks the most significant policy change for California’s rental housing owners and tenants in a quarter century. AB 1482 will apply to most — but not all — of the state’s multifamily housing stock.


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