Local rent caps and registry requirements are on track to end soon for Half Moon Bay rental housing providers.

On a 3-2 vote by the City Council on Tuesday, and in a move applauded by the California Apartment Association, the council preliminarily approved rescinding rules that cap annual rent increases for some older multifamily housing in the Bay Area city and require landlords to register units with the city.

A second reading to formalize the repeal is scheduled for May 5. If adopted, the ordinance repealing the rental regulations would take effect 30 days later. Councilmembers Patric Bo Jonsson, Paul Nagengast and Mayor Debbie Ruddock voted in favor; Councilmember Robert Brownstone and Vice Mayor Deborah Penrose voted no.

The vote came after the March 17 City Council direction to pursue Alternative 3. Under the approach, the city would repeal its residential rental registration and rent control chapters in their entirety, remove related definitions, and rely instead on statewide tenant protections already in place under the Tenant Protection Act of 2019, along with legal aid, counseling and referral services.

The local rules were adopted in 2024 and apply to certain multifamily properties built before February 1995, capping annual increases at the lesser of 3% or 80% of the Consumer Price Index. For the 2025-26 rental year, the allowable increase was 1.23%.

The city has spent about $257,000 on implementation and administration while collecting about $174,000 in related revenue.

Half Moon Bay joins other California cities, including Concord and Salinas, that have moved to scale back local rent control programs operating on top of state law.