If you are involved in any rentals/investments in the San Diego area or if you are thinking of getting involved make sure you have kept yourself up to date on all the new laws.
Better to know the law before finding yourself on the other end of litigation.
Here are some bullet points of the new laws coming into effect. (this is not legal advice it's just my opinion)
My opinion:
I think the California government has all the right altruism behind what they are doing, but most of what they seem to do does not help. (They need more real-life, boots-on-the-ground people making these laws or advisors explaining things to them) It feels like they do more harm than good most of the time.
Truthfully they keep blaming everyone else for the rental and housing crisis in the the state they manage. They make laws that look like they might help but mainly seem to hurt the very people they are trying to help.
Making laws that make landlords more and more likely to up the cost of rent to cover all the laws they have to follow and troubled entitled tenants they have to foot the bill for (which hurts good tenants), then worst case eventually pull their rentals from the market due to being too much of a headache is only going to get the exact opposite result from what the law was supposed to get.
I would love to know what everyone thinks of these.
- No-fault eviction rules will change for owner move-ins and remodels under Senate Bill 567, effective April 1, 2024.
- The California Tenant Protection Act of 2019 has been amended.
- Starting April 2024, more information is needed for a homeowner to end tenancy for moving or major remodel.
- To reclaim as owner-occupier, move in within 90 days of residents moving out.
- You must stay in the home for 12 months before it can be rented out again.
- The homeowner's close family must also follow this rule.
- Family members (spouse, parents, children, grandchildren), names, and relationships must be disclosed in the termination notice, following the same rules.
- Having occupied a rental unit on the property or a similar unit elsewhere does not qualify as grounds for lease termination.
- For remodels, owners of rental homes must provide more details of planned work, including copies of permits or signed contracts.
- If the work isn't completed, you must legally contact former tenants and offer the opportunity to move back in, so make sure to get a forwarding address when remodeling your rental home.
- Starting July 1, 2024, security deposits will be capped at one month's rent.
- Previous laws allowed 3 months' rent to be collected as a bond, in addition to the first month paid before moving in.
- With rising rents, move-in costs were becoming unaffordable for renters, especially for furnished properties.
- Moving forward, for a monthly rent of $2,500, the move-in cost will be capped at $5,000, including the security deposit and the first month's rent.
- This cap applies to both furnished and unfurnished homes.
- No need to return the difference if you already have a large security deposit of more than one month's rent.
- You can keep this amount even if it exceeds the new caps, until July 1, 2024.
- Homeowners will have increased protection against illegal occupancy with the implementation of Senate Bill 602, effective January 1, 2024.
- Trespassing and squatting pose genuine concerns to homeowners with empty properties.
- Starting in 2024, homeowners can notify the police about their vacant property, authorizing them to evict any trespasser who tries to live there or falsely claims to be a legal resident.
- This notice used to be valid for just 30 days.
- The amendment to SB 602 extends trespass letter validity to 12 months and allows electronic submission.
- A valid letter allows homeowners to avoid court eviction for illegal occupants.
- New laws to prevent credit history discrimination were introduced (Senate Bill 267) on January 1, 2024.
- Update your tenant screening process accordingly.
- If an applicant receives a government rental subsidy, you must reconsider how you evaluate their credit history and rental application.
- To prevent discrimination, changes to SB 267 prohibit landlords from relying on credit history unless the applicant has the opportunity to present alternative proof of their ability to pay their share of the rent.
- You must allow sufficient time for tenants to provide benefit statements, pay records, or bank statements.
- Consider this information instead of their credit history when deciding on lease agreement offers.
