How much can my landlord raise my rent? Am I being overcharged? Know these California laws

Living in California comes with a lofty price tag. For some, the costs have become unbearable.

Sacramento Bee reader Bonnie Cathey reached out to The Sacramento Bee’s service journalism team, which focuses on community-driven questions, to ask how much a landlord can legally charge for rent in California.

Cathey, 64, temporarily shares a multi-story home in Carmichael with 10 people. A Social Security beneficiary, she receives roughly $1,180 monthly and about 70% of it goes toward rent.

That leaves Cathey, a former campus monitor with the San Juan Unified School District, with approximately $380 to spend on critical needs like food, transportation and medication until the next check comes.

“What about us elderly and us disabled that have paid rent all our lives and still are nowhere paying for nothing?” said Cathey, a Sacramento native, who rents month to month.

“I worked for years, I paid into it to have something and I still can’t have my own home to live in ... I’m more or less am homeless,” she said in a phone interview.

Cathey isn’t alone in feeling burdened by high rent prices.

A popular rule of thumb is no more than 30% of your monthly income should go toward rent. That’s after taxes, according to Nerd Wallet, an online financial advice website.

The tricky part is everyone’s financial situation is unique.

The 30% rule is generally reasonable — but not in a state like California, said Deputy Director Deborah Thrope with the National Housing Law Project of San Francisco.

“It’s very common for tenants to be paying above 30% of their income in rent, if not well above 30%,” Thrope, an expert in affordable housing and tenant policy, said in a Friday phone interview.

According to online housing marketplace Zillow, the median rent in California is $2,795, which fluctuates depending on the property and number of bedrooms.

The median rent in Sacramento is $1,950. That’s 30% of a $6,500 monthly gross income.

In 2021, 20.1 million U.S. households paid more than 30% of their income on rent (utilities included), according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2021 American Community Survey.

Households that hover over 30% are considered cost-burdened, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development states. Severely cost-burdened households teeter over 50%.

These households have less cash to put toward food, transportation and childcare.

“People are severely rent burdened right now, leading to housing instability and also importantly, contributing to our challenges around homelessness in the state,” Thrope said.

The Bee consulted Thrope, the California Legislative Information website and the California Courts Self-Help Guide to understand the state laws surrounding how much a landlord can charge in rent and security deposits.

Here’s what we found:

The Tenant Protection Act

There is no cap on how much a landlord can charge for their space — which renters agree to through a lease usually in a six or 12-month term — but there is a limit on how much they can raise the price once the lease is complete.

Assembly Bill 1482, or the Tenant Protection Act, limits when a landlord can raise a tenant’s rent and how much.

State law says landlords cannot raise your rent more than 5% plus the percentage change in the cost of living or 10% (whichever is lower) over 12 months.

Rent cannot be raised by more than two increments over 12 months.

Certain properties are exempt from the law, including most single-family homes and duplexes, as well as affordable housing and properties constructed within the past 15 years.

Some cities have stricter codes. In Sacramento, for example, the maximum increase, updated annually, is capped at 9.2% as of July 2023. Rent can only be raised once in a year, regardless of how long a tenant has resided in the unit.

New law on security deposits

Most landlords request security deposits, but an upcoming law will limit how much they can legally charge.

The landlord collects a security deposit before the lease begins and it’s used if the tenant damages the unit or breaks the lease and doesn’t pay rent, according to the California Courts Self-Help Guide.

When the tenant moves out, the landlord has 21 days to either return the deposit in full or subtract any deductions with an itemized statement.

How long can a California landlord hold your security deposit after you move? Here’s the law

Starting in July, landlords cannot charge two or three times the amount of monthly rent as a security deposit, regardless if the unit is furnished or unfurnished.

In October, Gov. Gavin Newsom approved Assembly Bill 12, which caps security deposits equivalent to one month’s rent for leases signed on or after July 1.

Until then, the limit is two times the monthly rent for unfurnished units and three times the rent for furnished ones, the state justice department said.

Proposed law on pet rent and bans

A new bill could make it easier (and cheaper) for California pet owners to find rental housing.

The California legislature is considering Assembly Bill 2216, which would cease blanket no-pet bans and prohibit landlords from inquiring about pets on rental applications.

The bill would also eliminate extra monthly pet fees or “pet rent.”

The bill was introduced in February by Assemblyman Matt Haney, D-San Francisco, who authored Assembly Bill 12.

On April 9, it passed out of the judiciary committee 9-1 and was read for a second time the following day. The bill has been ordered to a third reading.

This proposed law would only cover common household pets, such as cats and dogs.

Affordable housing resources

Thrope said prospective renters should expect the search for affordable housing to be difficult — and that there is a need for more programs to help those on fixed incomes.

“Subsidies are of course worth their weight in gold because for the most part, you’re going to be paying a reasonable rent compared to your income,” she said.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development offers an interactive tool to search for affordable housing using a city or ZIP code.

The map does not maintain an updated list of the properties’ vacancies or wait lists but it reviews for compliance with regulations.

Thrope also recommends contacting your local HUD office or case manager for a full scope of the state and local resources available.

What else can I do?

Make a budget plan.

A list of your financial obligations will give you the best idea of how much or how little to adjust the 30% rule, according to Apartment List.

Then, use your gross income to calculate your rental threshold.

What do you want to know about life in Sacramento? Ask our service journalism team your top-of-mind questions in the module below or email servicejournalists@sacbee.com.