Salinas, CA Rental Property Rules: Rental Registration (2026)

Article I of Chapter 17, adopted by Ordinance No. 2663 (NCS) with an effective date of May 4, 2023, requires a landlord, defined broadly to include any owner, lessor, or sublessor entitled to rent, to register every residential rental unit subject to the article within forty-five calendar days of the effective date, using city-provided forms, with registration complete only once all information is submitted and all fees and penalties are paid (Sec. 03(a)). Registration statements expire June 30 each year and must be renewed between July 1 and July 31 (Sec.

03(b)). Required data includes the landlord's name and contact information, the unit's street address or Assessor's Parcel Number, its bedroom/bathroom count and square footage, its business-license number, and the property manager's contact information if any (Sec. 03(c)); rent amount, occupancy status, and subsidy status are optional. Landlords must pay an annual registry fee set under Resolution No. 22622 (Sec. 04(a)); missing that payment triggers a forty-five-day delinquency notice, then a ten-percent penalty of the fee, with another ten-percent penalty added every subsequent forty-five days the fee stays unpaid, and a citation once the fee has gone unpaid for one hundred eighty days (Sec.

04(b)). Landlords cannot pass late fees or penalties on to tenants (Sec. 04(c)). Exemptions apply to one hundred percent deed-restricted affordable units, legal accessory dwelling units where the primary home is owner-occupied, and mobile home park spaces (Sec. 04(d)). Registry information is collected in confidence, and the city may only release it in aggregated, non-identifying form in response to a Public Records Act request (Sec. 03(g)). A completed registration is also a prerequisite to obtaining the business license required under Chapter 19 (Sec. 06(b)).