Los Angeles Residential Lease Agreement
Generate a residential lease agreement that complies with Los Angeles's local ordinances — including rent control rules, just-cause eviction requirements, and mandatory disclosures that go beyond California state law.
Los Angeles Residential Lease Agreement
Los Angeles, California
Local Ordinances
Los Angeles Lease Requirements
What Los Angeles's local ordinances require that California state law does not.
Landlords subject to the Los Angeles Rent Stabilization Ordinance (RSO) must register each covered rental unit annually with the Los Angeles Housing Department (LAHD) and pay the annual registration fee; failure to register bars the landlord from collecting any rent increase.
Before serving any eviction notice for just cause, landlords must serve tenants with a written statement identifying the specific just cause reason from the 15 enumerated grounds under LAMC §151.09 and any applicable cure period.
For no-fault evictions (owner move-in, substantial rehabilitation, Ellis Act withdrawal), landlords must pay relocation assistance of one to three months' rent depending on unit size and tenant's length of tenancy, per LAMC §151.09(G).
All RSO-covered buildings must post the LAHD-issued Certificate of Rent Stabilization in a conspicuous location in the common area, and landlords must provide tenants with a copy of the RSO tenant rights summary upon request.
Landlords who seek to pass through capital improvement costs must apply to LAHD for a Rent Adjustment application; unilateral surcharges without LAHD approval are prohibited under the RSO.
Restrictions & Limits
Annual rent increases for RSO-covered units (buildings with two or more units built before October 1, 1978) are limited to the LAHD-approved allowable increase, which is typically set at 3–8% based on CPI calculations and announced each year; for rent increases effective July 1, 2024 through June 30, 2025, LAHD set the allowable increase at 4%.
Evictions of RSO tenants require one of 15 enumerated just cause grounds under LAMC §151.09, including non-payment, nuisance, refusal to allow lawful entry, and owner/relative move-in; 'no cause' or 'at will' terminations are prohibited.
Under the Ellis Act withdrawal process, landlords who remove all units from the rental market must pay relocation assistance and may not re-rent those units to anyone other than the original tenant for five years; offering units at a higher rent within that period triggers treble damages.
Landlords may not charge application fees exceeding the actual cost of a tenant screening report and must refund any unused portion if the unit is not rented to that applicant, per California Civil Code §1950.6.
Rent increases under the RSO are limited to once per 12-month period per unit, and any increase above the allowable percentage requires a rent adjustment hearing before LAHD; retroactive rent increases are prohibited.
Notice Requirements
Los Angeles RSO landlords must serve a 3-day notice to pay or quit for non-payment, a 3-day notice to perform or quit for lease violations with a right to cure, and for no-fault terminations (owner move-in, Ellis Act) must provide 60 days' written notice plus simultaneously tender the relocation assistance payment.
FAQ
Los Angeles Lease FAQ
Common questions about renting in Los Angeles.
Is my apartment covered by the Los Angeles RSO?
The RSO generally covers rental units in buildings with two or more units where a certificate of occupancy was issued before October 1, 1978, and which are not otherwise exempt (such as single-family homes, condominiums sold to a bona fide purchaser, or newly constructed units). You can verify RSO coverage by entering your address in the LAHD Rent Registry at housing2.lacity.org. Units subject only to AB 1482 (the statewide Tenant Protection Act) follow different rules with a higher allowable increase and fewer just cause eviction grounds.
How much relocation assistance am I owed for a no-fault eviction?
Under LAMC §151.09(G), relocation assistance for a no-fault eviction from an RSO unit equals one month's rent for units with fewer than two bedrooms, two months' rent for two-bedroom units, and three months' rent for units with three or more bedrooms; longer-tenancy tenants (5+ years) and low-income tenants receive an additional month. Relocation must be paid at the time the eviction notice is served, not at move-out. Failure to pay relocation as required renders the eviction notice void.
Can my landlord raise my rent after I moved in but the building was exempted?
If your building was covered by the RSO when you moved in and later lost its RSO coverage (e.g., through condominium conversion), any rent increase must still comply with the RSO rules that applied at the time of your tenancy unless LAHD formally exempts the unit. Exemptions based on substantial renovation require an LAHD determination; landlords who claim exemptions without formal approval may still be bound by RSO limits. Always request a copy of any exemption certificate the landlord claims.
What are the rules for owner move-in evictions in Los Angeles?
Under LAMC §151.09(A)(8), a landlord may evict a tenant to move in the landlord or a specified immediate family member, but the owner or family member must actually occupy the unit as their primary residence for at least 36 consecutive months. The landlord must serve 60 days' notice and simultaneously pay relocation assistance; re-renting the unit within 36 months at a higher rent triggers liability for three times the rent paid by the displaced tenant as damages plus attorney fees.
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