🏙 California Cities with
Local Tenant Protections
Dozens of California cities have enacted rent control and just cause eviction ordinances stronger than state law. Find out what your city provides beyond AB 1482.
Full City Guides
Featured City Pages
In-depth guides with RSO details, just cause rules, rent board contacts, and legal aid for California's most renter-protective cities.
🌆
3.9M residents — 64% renters
Los Angeles
LA County
Most Complex RSO in CA
Rent Cap
3-8% annually (HCIDLA-set)
Since
1978
- ✓ 600,000+ RSO-covered units
- ✓ Just Cause Ordinance covers ALL units after 12 months
- ✓ Eviction notices must be filed with HCIDLA
- ✓ Rent Escrow Account Program (REAP)
- ✓ Anti-Tenant Harassment Ordinance — up to $25,000 penalty
🌊
93,000 residents — 72% renters
Santa Monica
LA County
Lowest Cap in Southern CA
Rent Cap
CPI-based — often 1-3%, sometimes 0%
Since
1979
- ✓ Broad pre-1979 coverage including duplexes
- ✓ Buyout agreements must be registered with Rent Board
- ✓ Right of first return after remodel evictions
- ✓ Active Rent Control Board with free counseling
- ✓ Strict Ellis Act relocation — typically $15,000+
🌴
35,000 residents — 79% renters
West Hollywood
LA County
City Founded by Tenant Organizing
Rent Cap
75% of CPI — typically 1.5-3%
Since
1985
- ✓ City incorporated in 1984 by tenant activists
- ✓ 79% renter population — most renter-dominated in LA
- ✓ 3 months relocation for all no-fault RSO evictions
- ✓ Extra relocation for families with school-age children
- ✓ Notice of Tenant Rights required with every lease
🌉
870,000 residents — 63% renters
San Francisco
SF County
Right to Counsel — Free Attorney
Rent Cap
60% of CPI — typically 1-2.3% annually
Since
1979
- ✓ Right to Counsel: free attorney if income below 200% poverty
- ✓ Only 16 permissible grounds for eviction
- ✓ 60% of CPI — one of the lowest caps in the nation
- ✓ Buyout agreement 45-day rescission period
- ✓ Just cause applies to SFH and condos too
🏙
440,000 residents — 59% renters
Oakland
Alameda County
Just Cause After Only 30 Days
Rent Cap
CPI-based — typically 2-5% annually
Since
1980
- ✓ Just cause protections kick in after just 30 days
- ✓ 3 months rent relocation for no-fault RAP unit evictions
- ✓ Extra relocation for seniors, disabled, families with children
- ✓ Anti-Harassment Ordinance with civil penalties
- ✓ 5-year re-renting prohibition after Ellis Act withdrawal
🎓
124,000 residents — 57% renters
Berkeley
Alameda County
Nation's Oldest Rent Board
Rent Cap
CPI-based — typically 1.5-3%, can be 0%
Since
1978
- ✓ Rent board operating since 1978 — oldest in the US
- ✓ Free walk-in counseling, no appointment needed
- ✓ Mandatory mediation before any formal hearing
- ✓ Habitability-based rent reduction petitions
- ✓ Strict Ellis Act anti-speculation rules
🌹
138,000 residents — 52% renters
Pasadena
LA County
Tenant-Majority Board + Rent Rollback
Rent Cap
75% of CPI — currently 2.25% (2025-2026)
Since
2022
- ✓ Base rent rolled back to May 2021 levels for covered units
- ✓ ALL units — even exempt single-family homes — must register annually
- ✓ Security deposit interest required annually
- ✓ 2025 court ruling simplified the eviction notice process
- ✓ Tenant-majority Rental Housing Board administers the program
🎬
39,000 residents — 54% renters
Culver City
LA County
Just Cause Reaches Single-Family Homes
Rent Cap
60% of CPI — currently 3.25% (2025-2026)
Since
2020
- ✓ Two ordinances — eviction protections reach single-family homes
- ✓ Relocation = 3x rent (or fair market rent) plus $1,000
- ✓ Extra protection for long-term, senior, and disabled tenants
- ✓ Treble damages available for willful landlord violations
- ✓ Amended January 2026 with clarifying updates
⛵
1.4 million residents — 47% renters
San Diego
San Diego County
Just Cause From Day One
Rent Cap
AB 1482 only — 8.8% (2025-2026)
Since
2023
- ✓ Just cause applies from day 1 — no 12-month wait like state law
- ✓ No local rent cap — AB 1482 is the only ceiling
- ✓ Relocation: 2 months rent, 3 months for seniors/disabled
- ✓ Source of income (Section 8) protection built into the ordinance
- ✓ Mandatory Tenant Protection Guide required at lease signing
💻
1 million residents — 43% renters
San Jose
Santa Clara County
Protection Reaches Unpermitted Units
Rent Cap
Flat 5% — not tied to CPI
Since
1979 (TPO added 2017)
- ✓ Rent cap covers only ~29% of units — pre-1979, 3+ unit buildings
- ✓ Just cause protection covers ALL 3+ unit buildings, even unpermitted units
- ✓ 6-month rebuttable presumption of retaliation
- ✓ Numeric threshold required for substantial rehab evictions
- ✓ Mandatory Rent Registry for ARO-covered units
🏛
525,000 residents — 54% renters
Sacramento
Sacramento County
No Local Relocation Requirement
Rent Cap
5% + CPI (max 10%) — approximately 8.6% for 2026
Since
2019
- ✓ Covers pre-1995 multi-unit buildings and non-owner-occupied duplexes
- ✓ No local relocation assistance requirement — a 2020 ballot measure to add one failed
- ✓ Any lease clause waiving TPP rights is void as against public policy
- ✓ Landlord non-compliance is an automatic unlawful detainer defense
- ✓ Ambiguous rules on banking unused rent increases — verify before assuming validity
🏈
109,000 residents — 55% renters
Inglewood
LA County
Unusual "Greater Of" Rent Cap Formula
Rent Cap
3% or CPI, whichever is GREATER, plus possible FMR catch-up
Since
2019
- ✓ Rent cap uses "greater of" formula — opposite of most CA cities
- ✓ Fair Market Rent catch-up increases possible for underpriced units
- ✓ Improper terminations are void, not just legally defensible
- ✓ 2026 registry expansion now covers all 2+ unit and entity-owned properties
- ✓ Relocation: 3x monthly rent, plus $2,000 if minors live in the unit
🌊
62,000 residents — 56% renters
Santa Cruz
Santa Cruz County
Three Ordinances Patch Gaps, Don't Replace State Law
Rent Cap
AB 1482 only — no separate local cap
Since
2019 (Ch. 21.07); Measure M rent control failed 2018
- ✓ Comprehensive rent control (Measure M) failed at the ballot in 2018
- ✓ Section 8 voucher holders get equal just cause protection locally
- ✓ Affordable housing tenants keep AB 1482 cap after restrictions expire
- ✓ Separate relocation ordinance covers unsafe-housing displacement
- ✓ Large Rent Increase Ordinance discourages hikes without capping them
🍷
178,000 residents — 42% renters
Santa Rosa
Sonoma County
Rent Control Rejected by Voters
Rent Cap
AB 1482 only — no separate local cap
Since
Local ordinance rejected by voters, June 2017
- ✓ City Council passed rent control in 2016 — voters rejected it 52.5% in 2017
- ✓ No local rent board, registry, or petition process exists
- ✓ AB 1482 alone governs rent caps and just cause protection
- ✓ Sonoma County's 2024 tenant ordinance does NOT reach inside city limits
- ✓ Statewide price gouging protections apply after declared wildfire emergencies
💎
33,000 residents — 53% renters
Beverly Hills
LA County
Most Common Chapter Has No Rent Ceiling
Rent Cap
Ch. 5: lesser of 8% or CPI. Ch. 6 (97% of units): greater of 3% or CPI — no ceiling
Since
1970s-80s; Chapter 6 reformed 2017-2018
- ✓ Two-chapter system based on building age and original move-in rent
- ✓ Chapter 6 (97% of units): no ceiling, just a 3%-or-CPI floor
- ✓ No-cause eviction was legal in Chapter 6 units until 2017-2018 reforms
- ✓ Free legal consultations via city-funded Bet Tzedek partnership
- ✓ Major remodel evictions require a full year's notice
🔍
82,000 residents — 61% renters
Mountain View
Santa Clara County
Voter-Approved, Three-Tier Coverage
Rent Cap
100% of Bay Area CPI, set annually — no local RSO fixed percentage
Since
2016 — approved directly by voters
- ✓ Passed directly by voters (Measure V) — not a city council ordinance
- ✓ Three coverage tiers: full, just-cause-only, or AB 1482 backstop
- ✓ Administered by an elected 5-member Rental Housing Committee
- ✓ Statutory right to add family members to your household
- ✓ CSFRA takes precedence over AB 1482 for covered units
⚓
116,000 residents — 54% renters
Richmond
Contra Costa County
Voters Tightened Their Own Rent Cap in 2022
Rent Cap
3% or 60% of CPI (lower) — currently 1.62% (2025-2026)
Since
2016 — cap tightened by voter-approved Measure P, 2022
- ✓ Voters tightened their own rent cap via Measure P in 2022
- ✓ Just cause protection reaches even unpermitted rental units
- ✓ "Rent differential" payments instead of a flat relocation fee
- ✓ Non-compliant landlords cannot legally raise rent OR evict
- ✓ Banking of unused increases allowed, capped at 3% above current AGA
🛥
115,000 residents — 38% renters
Antioch
Contra Costa County
Rent Cap and Just Cause Passed Two Years Apart
Rent Cap
Lesser of 3% or 60% of CPI — updated more frequently than annually
Since
RSO: 2022. Just Cause: 2024 — a separate, later ordinance
- ✓ Just cause protection didn't arrive until a 2024 ordinance — 2 years after the rent cap
- ✓ Owner move-in requires 2 full years of continuous occupancy
- ✓ Terminally ill tenants cannot be displaced for owner move-in at all
- ✓ 24-month right of return — double the window many cities provide
- ✓ Rent increases are prohibited outright if the unit isn't habitable
🌳
160,000 residents — 49% renters
Hayward
Alameda County
Just Cause Reaches Twice as Many Units as the Rent Cap
Rent Cap
Flat 5% — no CPI tie-in
Since
2019 (council ordinance — not a ballot measure)
- ✓ Flat 5% cap with no CPI math — simpler than most Bay Area cities
- ✓ Just cause covers nearly all units, roughly double the rent-cap coverage
- ✓ Post-eviction re-rentals capped at 5% above the prior tenant's rent
- ✓ Mandatory mediation, escalating to binding arbitration
- ✓ Some sources cite a fake "Measure O" — the real law is a 2019 council ordinance
🚦
91,000 residents — 45% renters
San Leandro
Alameda County
A Law That Exists But Isn't Active Yet
Rent Cap
AB 1482 for now; local flat ~5% cap starts January 1, 2027
Since
Adopted Feb 2, 2026; effective January 1, 2027
- ✓ Rent cap and just cause don't take effect until January 1, 2027
- ✓ Retroactive Base Rent date of July 1, 2025 could mean rollbacks
- ✓ Rental Registry already active since January 2026
- ✓ Banking of unused increases will be explicitly prohibited
- ✓ Only applies inside city limits — not unincorporated areas nearby
🌲
19,000 residents — 60% renters
Arcata
Humboldt County
Common Misconception: No Local Ordinance Exists
Rent Cap
AB 1482 only — no local apartment/house cap exists
Since
n/a — no general rent stabilization ordinance ever enacted
- ✓ Despite 60% renters and Cal Poly Humboldt demand, no local rent control exists
- ✓ Some sources falsely describe a local ordinance that was never enacted
- ✓ A real but narrower Mobilehome Rent Stabilization Ordinance covers park space rent only
- ✓ No dedicated rent board — Building Division handles general renter questions
- ✓ Cal Poly Humboldt students get the same AB 1482 protections as any CA renter
Complete List
All California Cities with Local Rent Protections
Every California city with a local rent stabilization ordinance or meaningful tenant protections beyond AB 1482.
Southern California 9 cities
Los Angeles
LA County
Full Guide
RSO + JCO
Cap: 3-8%
Since 1978
Santa Monica
LA County
Full Guide
Charter RSO
Cap: 1-3% CPI
Since 1979
West Hollywood
LA County
Full Guide
RSO
Cap: 75% of CPI
Since 1985
Beverly Hills
LA County
Full Guide
RSO Ch. 5 & 6
Cap: Ch.6: 3% or CPI (no ceiling)
Since 1970s-80s
Culver City
LA County
Full Guide
RSO
Cap: 3% or CPI
Since 2020
Inglewood
LA County
Full Guide
RSO + JCO
Cap: 3% or CPI (greater)
Since 2019
Pasadena
LA County
Full Guide
RSO
Cap: CPI
Since 2022
San Diego
San Diego County
Full Guide
Tenant Protections Ord.
Cap: AB 1482 + JC
Since 2023
National City
San Diego County
Local ordinance
Cap: AB 1482 + local
Since 2021
Bay Area 14 cities
San Francisco
SF County
Full Guide
Rent Ordinance Ch. 37
Cap: 60% CPI ~1-2%
Since 1979
Oakland
Alameda County
Full Guide
Rent Adjustment Program
Cap: CPI ~2-5%
Since 1980
Berkeley
Alameda County
Full Guide
Rent Stabilization
Cap: CPI ~1.5-3%
Since 1978
Hayward
Alameda County
Full Guide
RRSO
Cap: Flat 5%
Since 2019
Alameda
Alameda County
RSO
Cap: 5% or CPI
Since 1979
San Leandro
Alameda County
Full Guide
Adopted 2026 — effective Jan 2027
Cap: AB 1482 until 2027
Since 2027
San Jose
Santa Clara County
Full Guide
RSO + TPO
Cap: Flat 5%
Since 1979
Mountain View
Santa Clara County
Full Guide
CSFRA
Cap: CPI only
Since 2016
Milpitas
Santa Clara County
RSO
Cap: 5% or CPI
Since 2020
Los Gatos
Santa Clara County
RSO
Cap: CPI
Since 1980
Richmond
Contra Costa County
Full Guide
Fair Rent Ordinance
Cap: 3% or 60% CPI (lower)
Since 2016
Antioch
Contra Costa County
Full Guide
RSO (2022) + Just Cause (2024)
Cap: Lesser of 3% or 60% CPI
Since 2022
Santa Rosa
Sonoma County
Full Guide
AB 1482 only — local RSO rejected 2017
Cap: AB 1482 only
Since n/a
Petaluma
Sonoma County
Just cause ord. — no local rent cap
Cap: AB 1482 only
Since 2022
Central Coast 1 cities
Santa Cruz
Santa Cruz County
Full Guide
AB 1482 + gap-filling ord.
Cap: AB 1482 only
Since 2019
Northern California 3 cities
📋 Cities Not Listed — AB 1482 Still Applies
If your city is not listed, California's statewide AB 1482 (Tenant Protection Act) still caps rent increases at 5% + CPI (max 10%) and requires just cause for eviction after 12 months for most multi-family buildings built before 2009.