Berkeley Landlord-Tenant Rules

Rent stabilization: Berkeley's Rent Stabilization Board sets an Annual General Adjustment (AGA) for fully covered units equal to 65% of the change in the Bay Area CPI (July 1 to June 30 of the prior year), capped at 5% under Measure BB. The 2027 AGA is 2.5% (the 2026 AGA was 1.0%). Landlords need 30 days' written notice for increases of 10% or less and 90 days' for larger increases. A tenancy cannot receive an AGA for the rest of the year it began or the following calendar year (for example, a tenancy starting March 1, 2027 first qualifies in 2029). No AGA may be taken if registration fees are unpaid, a Rent Board order denies it, there are serious repair problems or outstanding code violations, or security deposit interest has not been paid. Unused AGAs may be banked and taken later with proper notice.; Just-cause eviction: Berkeley's good-cause rules cover rent-controlled units, post-1980 'new construction' units, single-family homes, units owned or leased by the Berkeley Housing Authority, and units rented to Section 8 participants. A landlord may evict only for a listed ground: nonpayment after a 3-day notice (the unpaid rent must be at least one month of the HUD Fair Market Rent for that unit size); a continued material lease violation after written notice that causes substantial actual damage; substantial damage; continued disturbance after a written request to stop; refusing lawful entry; substantial code repairs that require a vacant unit; demolition; owner or qualifying-relative move-in; owner return permitted by the lease; or refusing to leave temporary housing after repairs. Sale of the property, expiration of a lease, refusing to sign a substantially similar new lease, change in Section 8 status, and foreclosure are not good cause. Notices must state the ground, give Rent Board contact information, and allege registration and habitability compliance. Copies of the notice and the eviction lawsuit must be filed with the Rent Board within 3 business days of service. Owner move-in is barred against certain long-term, elderly or disabled tenants of larger landlords, and against households with minor children during the school year.; Relocation assistance: For owner move-in and Ellis Act evictions, the landlord must pay relocation assistance to a tenant household that has lived in the unit at least one year. Starting January 1, 2027: $20,151 standard payment plus $6,717 more for households that are low income, include a disabled or elderly tenant or minor children, or whose tenancy began before January 1, 1999. Through December 31, 2026 the amounts are $19,413 and $6,471. For owner move-in, the payment must be deposited with the Rent Board within 10 days of serving the notice. The amounts adjust each January 1 for inflation.; Lockouts/harassment: Berkeley's Tenant Protection Ordinance bars landlords from acting in bad faith to push a tenant out through fraud, intimidation or coercion. Examples: disrupting services; invading privacy, including asking about immigration status; abusing the right of entry; exploiting a tenant's disability; failing to make repairs promptly and properly or threatening not to make them; refusing to accept rent or give a receipt; violating the Tenant Buyout Ordinance; and human trafficking as a condition of occupancy. For some repair claims the tenant must first give notice and allow 15 days to cure. Remedies in a civil suit include an injunction, actual damages (including emotional distress, trebled for knowing or reckless violations), civil penalties of $1,000 to $10,000 per violation, an additional penalty of up to $5,000 per violation against a disabled tenant or one age 65 or over, and attorney's fees. Landlords must give tenants the City's Tenant Protection Ordinance notice at the start of any tenancy beginning after April 2017 and with any eviction notice. Leaving it out is a defense to an eviction.