California Civil Code §1954.603 requires every Santa Clara County landlord to give new tenants a written bed-bug information notice and disclose known infestations. SCC DEH and city code enforcement respond to habitability complaints; treatment cost normally falls on the landlord.
Civil Code §1954.603, effective January 2017, requires every California landlord throughout Santa Clara County to provide tenants a written bed-bug disclosure notice before lease signing, and post the same information in common areas of buildings with three or more units. Landlords cannot show or rent a unit they know is infested. Civil Code §1954.604 obligates tenants to report suspected bed bugs and allow access for licensed pest control treatment. Treatment cost typically falls on the landlord because California habitability law (Civil Code §1941.1) treats infestations as substandard. SCC DEH handles complaints about commercial lodging like hotels; cities such as San Jose and Mountain View enforce residential rental issues through housing agencies.
Landlords who fail to disclose face tenant rent-withholding, repair-and-deduct, and habitability lawsuits under Civil Code §1942. SCC and city code enforcement may cite owners under substandard housing rules with administrative fines per unit and orders to abate within set timelines.
Palo Alto, CA
Palo Alto tenants are protected by California AB 1482 (Civil Code 1946.2), which requires landlords to state just cause to terminate tenancies of 12+ months ...
Palo Alto, CA
Palo Alto residents must use licensed structural pest control operators for fumigation, with state laws governing pesticide application and rodent abatement ...
See how Palo Alto's bed-bug rules rules stack up against other locations.
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