California requires written notice before raising a month-to-month tenant's rent. Under Civ. Code § 827, increases of 10% or less in 12 months need 30 days' notice; increases above 10% need 90 days' notice. AB 1482 separately caps yearly increases on covered units.
Under Civil Code § 827, a landlord changing the rent on a month-to-month tenancy must serve written notice. If the increase, alone or combined with prior increases in 12 months, is 10% or less, "the notice shall be delivered at least 30 days before the effective date of the increase." If it exceeds 10%, the notice must be "at least 90 days" ahead. Separately, the Tenant Protection Act (Civ. Code § 1947.12, AB 1482) provides an owner "shall not, over the course of any 12-month period, increase the gross rental rate... more than 5 percent plus the percentage change in the cost of living, or 10 percent, whichever is lower" for covered units, with no more than two increases yearly.
An increase served without the proper 30- or 90-day notice is ineffective until valid notice runs. Rent charged above the AB 1482 cap is void as to the excess; tenants may recover overpayments and sometimes damages and attorney's fees.
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