Santa Barbara County, CA Rental Property Rules: Rent Increase Notice (2026)
Key Facts
- Notice trigger
- Any increase above 75% of CPI rise
- Meet-and-confer window
- 17 to 25 days after notice
- Expense disclosure
- Within 10 days of notice, 4 years' data
- Homeowner petition deadline
- 45 days after date of notice
- CPI index used
- LA-Long Beach-Anaheim, Base Index 1967=100
Summary
When a mobile home park in unincorporated Santa Barbara County wants to raise rent above 75% of the CPI increase, Sec. 11A-5 requires management's written notice to itemize the increase, compare it against the Consumer Price Index, and set a meet-and-confer session with homeowners before the raise can take effect.
(a)Management's notice of an increase in the maximum rent schedule shall:(1)Comply with state law; and(2)Indicate whether or not the percentage of noticed increase in relation to the previous maximum rent schedule, less allowed costs for capital improvements and/or capital expenses, if any, is in excess of seventy-five percent of the percentage by which the most recently published edition of the United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers, Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim area, all items, Base Index 1967=100, shows that such index has increased during the immediately preceding twelve months for which said index has been published at the time notice of said increase was given or since the last rent increase (hereinafter called "in excess of seventy-five percent of CPI"); ... (b)Homeowners may, no later than forty-five days after the date of notice, file a petition for hearing to contest the proposed increase but only if the increase is in excess of seventy-five percent of CPI.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 44 Update 1).
Full Breakdown
Under Sec. S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Price Index for the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim area over the prior twelve months. If the increase is above that 75%-of-CPI threshold, the notice must itemize increased operating costs, new and old capital expenses, any offsets, and capital improvements, and must schedule a meet-and-confer session with homeowner representatives, held between 17 and 25 days after the notice under the county's Mobilehome Rent Control Rules for Hearings. No later than ten days after the notice, management must make available a detailed list of expenses and income for the prior four years.
Homeowners then have 45 days from the date of the notice to file a hearing petition signed by a homeowner majority; the arbitrator will deny a hearing if management proves the petition wasn't timely or lacked majority support, or if the increase didn't actually exceed 75% of CPI, or if no homeowner representative attended the meet-and-confer session. An arbitrator must also deny the increase outright if management raised rent within the prior twelve months or skipped the meet-and-confer step.
Violations & Fines
Management that increases the rent schedule without giving the notice required by Sec. 11A-5, or without holding a required meet-and-confer session, risks having the entire proposed increase denied at arbitration under Sec. 11A-5(e). A willful violation of the notice requirements also falls under the general Chapter 11A penalty in Sec. 11A-12: a fine of up to $500, up to six months imprisonment, or both, plus a private suit for actual damages and up to $200 in civil penalties per violation.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much notice must a mobile home park give before raising rent?
Can homeowners fight a mobile home rent increase?
What if the park skips the meet-and-confer requirement?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Santa Barbara County
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