ATTENTION ALL LANDLORDS (now known as “Housing Providers”)
Check your mail & remember to complete and mail and your rental registry to the City of Los Angeles to avoid penalties & fines.
Recently a client called for clarification on his new rental property. Remember generally the rent stabilization ordinance (RSO) applies to rental properties built before October 1978 including condos, apartments, duplexes, ADUs etc. Check Zimas to be certain for your property. One must file within 45 days of initial ownership and annually.
Allowable Rent Increases
Effective Feb 1, 2024 – June 30, 2024, the RSO allowable rent increase is 4%. An additional 1% for gas and 1% for electric service can be added if landlord provides service to the tenant. State law requires landlords to provide an advance 30 day writen notice for rent increases.
More details at housing2.cityla.org.
New CA State Laws in 2024
Landlord/Tenant: Security Deposits Limited to One Month’s Rent (AB 12)
Beginning July 1, 2024, a landlord may collect only one month’s rent in addition to the first month’s rent. There is no exception for furnished units. But there is a carve-out for “small landlords.” Small landlords can collect two months’ rent as security deposit plus the first month’s rent, again without regard to whether the property is furnished or unfurnished.
What exactly is a small landlord? A small landlord is a “natural person” who owns no more than two residential rental properties that together include no more than four units. For example, a landlord who owns one single-family property and one triplex is a small landlord. A family trust can qualify as a small landlord, as well as an LLC, as long as every member of the LLC is a natural person. Even for small landlords, if the prospective tenant is a service member, the security is limited to one month’s rent.
What about currently held security deposits in excess of one month’s rent? Landlords who currently hold a security deposit or those who demand or collect a security deposit in excess of one month’s rent prior to July 1, 2024, may retain the security deposit even though it is more than one month’s rent.
Source: California Association of Realtors
Useful resources
Tenant Landlord Guide
Relocation Assistance Guidelines 2023-2024
To verify if property falls under RSO zimas.lacity.org