How much can rent go up in California, and when can a landlord evict? A plain-English guide to the statewide rules and the local ordinances that go further — with links to the public records behind them. General legal information, not legal advice.
AB 1482 sets a floor of tenant protections across California. For covered units it caps annual rent increases at 5% + local CPI, never exceeding 10% in a 12-month period, and requires “just cause” to end a tenancy after 12 months of residence. No-fault terminations (owner move-in, Ellis Act withdrawal, substantial remodel, government order) generally require relocation assistance of one month's rent.
The Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act limits how far local rent control can reach: it exempts housing built after February 1995, single-family homes and condominiums, and permits vacancy decontrol (resetting rent to market when a unit turns over). AB 1482 layers similar carve-outs — new construction (rolling 15-year window), non-corporate single-family homes, owner-occupied duplexes, and deed-restricted affordable housing.
Many California cities run their own rent boards with tighter caps and richer tenant protections. Each publishes data we make searchable:
For housing covered by the Tenant Protection Act of 2019 (AB 1482), annual rent increases are capped at 5% plus the local Consumer Price Index (CPI), with a hard ceiling of 10% in any 12-month period — whichever is lower. Cities with their own rent-control ordinances (San Francisco, Los Angeles, Oakland, Santa Monica, Berkeley, and others) often impose lower limits that control instead.
AB 1482 requires a landlord to state a valid reason ("just cause") to end a tenancy once a tenant has lived in the unit for 12 months. "At-fault" causes include nonpayment of rent or lease violations; "no-fault" causes (such as owner move-in, withdrawal under the Ellis Act, or substantial remodel) generally require relocation assistance equal to one month's rent.
Common exemptions include housing built within the last 15 years (a rolling date), single-family homes and condos not owned by a corporation or REIT (with proper notice), owner-occupied duplexes, and most deed-restricted affordable housing. Costa-Hawkins also bars local rent control on these categories and permits vacancy decontrol.
The Ellis Act lets a landlord "go out of the rental business" by withdrawing all units in a building from the rental market — a no-fault basis for eviction that is tracked publicly in cities like San Francisco. It is frequently used to convert rental buildings to condos or tenancies-in-common.
This is general legal information about California law, not legal advice, and does not address your specific situation. Consult a qualified attorney about your circumstances.