California law makes it very difficult to raise rents or evict apartment tenants in rent-controlled jurisdictions. It is important that any lease you have with a new tenant is drafted in accordance with the law, but also protects your rights as a landlord. Contact Zacks, Freedman & Patterson, PC for advice on your residential and commercial leases. To schedule a consultation, contact us online or call us at 415-956-8100. We can assist you in the preparation of leases and leases. Shared electricity meters are often a problem in apartment buildings. For example, two tenants often share the same electricity meter, or any number of units share a meter with another part of .B a building, such as a laundry room. The landlord and tenant(s) must agree on who is responsible for the costs associated with shared meters. While this agreement may be incorporated into the periodic lease or lease, California law does not require it. As the DCA explains, as of 2010, there is no standard lease or periodic lease in California. Because each document is different, the TCA encourages tenants to read every part of it. It should at least identify all parties – the owner, the agent of an owner, such as an apartment manager and all tenants; rent conditions, for example. B when and to whom it is to be paid; the conditions of the deposit; the building`s pet policy; the maximum number of persons allowed to live in the unit; and who is responsible for paying for each utility and maintaining the landscaping.
Any other promise or agreement made must also be included in the lease. Laws and policies regarding landlord-tenant agreements vary from state to state. Some places use special ordinances that effectively complement or strengthen state law. In any case, a housing contract, especially a legally binding lease in most states, offers tenants and landlords several protections. A lease indicates the number of months a tenant is responsible for paying the rent, as well as the length of time the tenant and landlord must comply with the terms of the contract. By signing a lease, a tenant legally agrees to pay rent each month until the lease expires. In California, leases typically last 1 year before moving on to monthly contracts, similar to the periodic lease mentioned above. We strongly recommend that San Francisco landlords have specific leases in San Francisco, as well as other cities with rent control, and consult with a lawyer before entering into or using a new agreement. However, sometimes prevention is not possible and, therefore, a large part of our practice is to help owners who have inherited or are otherwise entangled in problems arising from inadequate agreements. Our many years of experience in this area of law allow us to provide valuable and up-to-date advice and documents to homeowners in the Bay Area. Regardless of what the periodic lease says, the DCA reminds tenants that they have basic legal rights in California.
For example, the deportation process in California is tightly controlled, especially in big cities like San Francisco. In San Francisco, a landlord can only evict a tenant with one of 15 „just causes.“ These include „non-payment of rent“, „habitual delay in payment of rent“, breach of the lease or allowing an illegal tenant to occupy the dwelling, for example. B a part that is not included in the lease. The San Francisco Rent Board (SFRB) reports that landlords distributed 1,269 eviction notices throughout the city between March 1, 2009 and February 28, 2010. Zacks, Freedman & Patterson, PC is one of San Francisco`s leading law firms for commercial and residential matters between landlords and tenants. We have been advising owners for over 25 years. Our firm can help you prepare a lease or lease that meets your needs and is also compliant with federal, state and local laws. A strong and well-thought-out agreement is the most important safeguard of a landlord`s or tenant`s interests. We have extensive experience in drafting and negotiating leases for Bay Area apartment owners and commercial tenants and landlords.
We are often asked what lease a San Francisco landlord should use for tenants moving into a rental property. The answer is clear. The San Francisco Apartment Association has written an excellent lease for residential real estate that we highly recommend to any homeowner in San Francisco. This is the lease we use ourselves at Gordon Property Management. In California, there are two main types of owner-tenant contracts: a periodic lease and a lease. The law allows landlords and tenants to make written or oral versions of both, according to the Ministry of Consumer Affairs (DCA). In both cases, California considers the covenant to be legally binding. Commercial leases are often very complex with several different documents that make up the entire agreement. It is important for a lawyer to review these documents before entering into a commercial lease to ensure that you are protected, that risks are shared appropriately between the landlord and tenant, and that as many future unknowns as possible are considered. We can also help you negotiate the terms of such an agreement with the other party.
Our experienced landlord-tenant lawyers have worked on a variety of landlord-tenant issues and are familiar with federal, state or local laws that apply to residential and commercial leases. Our lawyers know the rules and potential pitfalls after taking the resulting cases to court and can provide you with the necessary information to help you draft a legally compliant lease or lease that benefits you and protects your interests. Our rental and leasing services include: As part of a periodic lease, the landlord and tenant set a period of time that essentially governs their understanding. For example, a 30-day agreement known as a monthly agreement states that the tenant must pay the rent every 30 days. As the DCA notes, in California, a periodic lease expires each time a tenant pays their rent and renews it with subsequent payment of the rent. The rental period also determines the amount of termination that each party must give if they wish to terminate the contract. It also represents the number of days the landlord must terminate if they wish to change the terms of the agreement. While inexpensive residential leases are available from multiple sources, homeowners in the San Francisco Bay Area should generally avoid them at all costs. The provisions of otc agreements rarely address the specific aspects of local rent ordinances, and landlords who hope to save money by using these types of forms often lose much more in the future because they don`t have specific language in their agreements to protect them. 208 – Evictions due to a breach of lease with a significant change in the original lease term 265 – Disclosure requirements for online rental advertisements 327 – Requests for extension of time to complete capital improvements 359 – Section 6.15C (3) Subtenant applications based on proportional rent 312 – Tenant objections to a request for capital improvements If you accept the request for improvements to the leases Capital provided by the San Francisco Apartment Association Do not use a lease, you need to make sure you have something complete. Any lease is better than no lease, but it`s definitely worth it for you to have the 309 – Special Rules for Seismic Work and Other Improvements Required by Law 203 – Notification Requirements for Evictions Based on Property or Relative Move-in As a writer, Rocco Pendola has published many academic and popular articles since 2002 and is also an independent scholar and researcher.
His work has been published on SFGate and Planetizen as well as in the journals Environment & Behavior and Health and Place. Pendola holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Urban Studies from San Francisco State University. . If you are a landlord in San Francisco who manages your own property, we highly recommend joining the Apartment Association. .