Alameda Landlord-Tenant Rules

Rent control: Alameda's Rent Ordinance caps yearly rent increases on covered units at the Annual General Adjustment (AGA). The AGA for September 1, 2026 through August 31, 2027 is 2.7% (it was 1.0% for September 1, 2025 through August 31, 2026). The AGA is 70% of the change in the Consumer Price Index for the 12 months ending in April, and never more than 5% or less than 1%. Rent caps apply to units in multi-unit properties built before February 1995 (units not exempt from local rent control under state law). Unused increases can be banked, but a landlord may bank no more than 8%, may add no more than 3% of banked increases on top of the current AGA, and banked increases expire when a new tenancy starts or the property is transferred.; Just-cause eviction: A landlord may end a tenancy only for one of the grounds listed in the Rent Ordinance: failure to pay rent; a continued material breach of the rental agreement after written notice to cease; continued nuisance after notice; continued refusal to give lawful access after written notice; owner or relative move-in; demolition; withdrawal from the rental market (Ellis Act); or compliance with a government order to vacate. A tenant cannot be evicted for adding a spouse, domestic partner, parent, child, grandchild or foster child within occupancy limits. Before evicting over subletting or occupant limits, the landlord must give 14 days' written notice to cure. Owner move-in is limited to a natural person with at least 50% ownership, and the owner or relative must move in within 60 days and live there at least three years.; Relocation assistance: Landlords must pay permanent relocation when a tenancy ends for owner move-in, demolition, withdrawal from the rental market (Ellis Act), or compliance with a government order. Amounts effective July 1, 2026: studio $6,782; 1 bedroom $7,617; 2 bedrooms $8,799; 3 bedrooms $11,049; 4 or more bedrooms $12,912. Qualified tenant households (with a senior, a person with a disability, or a child under 18) get more: studio $8,764; 1 bedroom $10,019; 2 bedrooms $11,758; 3 bedrooms $15,166; 4 or more bedrooms $17,961. Half is due within three business days after the tenant tells the landlord in writing, and the rest after the tenant moves out.; Utility charges: For new tenancies that start on or after August 6, 2026 in rent-controlled units, landlords may not charge tenants for utilities that are not separately metered, including ratio billing (RUBS) and flat monthly utility charges. Landlords at mixed properties may not shift utility charges for newer units onto tenancies that began before August 6, 2026. The ordinance also creates a process for a one-time rent adjustment request.