California sets no fixed dollar or percentage cap on rent late fees, but a late fee in a residential lease is treated as liquidated damages. Under Civil Code § 1671, such a fee is valid only if it reasonably estimates the landlord's actual loss from late payment; arbitrary penalty fees are unenforceable.
California has no statute setting a maximum late fee. Instead, a late fee is a liquidated-damages clause governed by Civil Code § 1671(d), which makes such provisions in residential leases "void except that the parties... may agree... upon an amount which shall be presumed to be the amount of damage sustained by a breach thereof, when, from the nature of the case, it would be impracticable or extremely difficult to fix the actual damage." California courts (e.g., Orozco v. Casimiro) have voided late fees that function as penalties rather than genuine estimates of the landlord's costs, such as administrative expense and lost use of funds. A fee unrelated to actual damages is unenforceable even if the lease recites it.
An unenforceable penalty late fee cannot be collected, and amounts already paid may be recoverable by the tenant. Relying on an unlawful penalty fee in an eviction can defeat the unlawful detainer if it inflates the rent demanded.
Other ordinances people look up for this city. Green dot = verified primary-source excerpt.
Rialto, CA
Rialto requires permits for walls taller than 42 inches and building permits for all masonry and retaining walls. Block walls get three city inspections, and...
Rialto, CA
Barbed wire and razor wire are prohibited in all Rialto residential zones, and no sharp points may top any fence under six feet. City design standards also r...
Rialto, CA
Rialto caps household pets at four weaned dogs and cats combined, and no more than three of them may be dogs. The limit appears in Rialto Municipal Code Sect...
Rialto, CA
Backyard fires in Rialto are legal only as contained cooking or warming fires burning clean fuels such as propane, natural gas, charcoal, or untreated wood. ...
Rialto, CA
Removing a street or parkway tree requires prior written permission from the public services director, and the city's published criteria allow removal only o...
Rialto, CA
Rialto has no cryptocurrency-mining ordinance and no energy cap. A commercial mining facility is treated as an industrial use in the M-1 or M-2 manufacturing...
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