California Residential Lease Agreement

A California residential lease agreement (“rental agreement”) is a written contract where one party (the “tenant”) lives in a particular property (“premises”) owned or overseen by another party (the “landlord”), in exchange for regular payments of rent. Governed by California’s landlord-tenant law, a lease has terms and conditions describing the duties of each party.

California Lease Agreement Disclosures

California requires the following disclosures for some or all residential lease agreements.

Methamphetamine and Fentanyl Contamination Disclosure

California rental agreements require disclosure of any information relating to the manufacture, storage, or use of methamphetamine and fentanyl on a property. This includes a copy of any notices received relating to methamphetamine or fentanyl contamination.

Landlords must also obtain acknowledgement from prospective tenants, before the rental agreement is signed, that notice has been delivered about any ongoing remediation efforts. These requirements apply until the landlord receives a notice from a local health officer deeming the property uncontaminated. [2]

Landlords must begin treatment of any known contamination before the lease begins, for tenant safety. A property is not inhabitable with concentration levels above 1.5 μg/100 cm^2. [3]

This is an example of a methamphetamine and fentanyl disclosure:

Methamphetamine contamination can be dangerous to Tenant(s) in high concentrations, presenting health concerns through absorption of the materials in the air.

 

This property:
[ ] Is contaminated above safe levels and is in the process of decontamination.
[ ] Is contaminated, but falls within safe levels after tests were conducted.
[ ] Has no suspicion of contamination.

Download: California Methamphetamine Disclosure Form (PDF)

Mold Disclosure

California landlords must provide a mold disclosure when there’s a reasonable basis to conclude the growth or presence of toxic mold. Until the mold gets treated according to local safety standards, the mold disclosure must be included in the lease or provided alongside. [4]

A mold disclosure may also appear in a lease for a rental with no known or suspected mold. This certifies that the tenant takes possession of the property with no mold issues, which may help reduce landlord liability.

Landlords also are asked to distribute an informational consumer-oriented booklet from California’s Department of Health Services before a tenant enters a rental agreement.

Download: California Mold Disclosure Form (PDF)

Sex Offender Registry Notice

Every California rental agreement must notify tenants about the “Megan’s Law” sex offender registry. [5]

NOTICE: Pursuant to Section 290.46 of the Penal Code, information about specified registered sex offenders is made available to the public via an Internet Web site maintained by the Department of Justice at www.meganslaw.ca.gov. Depending on an offender’s criminal history, this information will include either the address at which the offender resides or the community of residence and ZIP Code in which the offender resides.

Demolition Permit Disclosure

California landlords must disclose any intentions to demolish a rental unit or building and any applications for a demolition permit. The disclosure should state the approximate date of demolition. [6]

An example of a section to be included in the rental agreement would be:

DISCLOSURE OF DEMOLITION. On __/__/__, the following unit(s) are scheduled for demolition. On or after this date, active lease agreements will terminate for the affected unit(s).

Download: California Demolition Permit Disclosure Form (PDF)

Military Ordnance Disclosure

California requires a military ordnance disclosure as part of a rental agreement for any property that falls within one mile of military training grounds or ordnance storage.

Normally in the rental agreement, this notifies the tenant there is a possibility of live munitions near the rental property.  [7]

This is an example ordnance disclosure clause:

ORDNANCE DISCLOSURE. This property is located within one mile of a former federal or military facility which may contain explosive munitions.

Download: California Military Ordnance Disclosure Form (PDF)

Death in a Rental Unit Disclosure

California landlords must disclose any deaths on the rental property other than deaths related to HIV or AIDS, which are protected by state statute. [8]

A standard form of this clause often appears in the rental agreement, even with no deaths reported on the rental property.

This is an example death disclosure clause:

At the time of this lease agreement, Landlord certifies the following information pertaining to the history of death in the rental property:

 

[ ] No death reported
[ ] Death by natural causes
[ ] The death was caused by violent crime: ________
[ ] Death by communicable disease:_______

 

Tenant has a right to have questions answered pertaining to death in the rental unit to the best of the Landlord’s knowledge upon request.

Download: California Death in a Rental Unit Disclosure Form (PDF)

Pest Control Disclosure

In California, adjacent tenants and persons at risk of secondhand exposure must receive at least 24 hours of notice before a pesticide application on a rental property. Notice reduces the potential for landlord liability regarding any temporary displacement of tenants. [9]

Additionally, on properties which receive regular pesticide treatments, new and existing tenants must receive a disclosure to this effect which includes a copy of the notice from the pest control company on the expected terms of the contract. [10]

Pest control schedules or notices often are attached to rental agreements.

Download: California Pest Control Disclosure Form (PDF)

Shared Utilities Arrangements

California rentals without their own utility meter must disclose this fact in the rental agreement. Such rentals must also execute an agreement between the landlord and tenant for payment of utility services. [11]

Options for a shared utility agreement can include:

• The landlord assumes the shared utility.
• A submetering system.
• Total charges split across multiple parties in multiple units.
• Other methods of apportioning utility payments.

This is an example of a utility sharing clause:

UTILITIES: This rental unit shares the following utilities with another unit or common area:

[ ] Electricity
[ ] Water
[ ] Gas
[ ] Sewage
[ ] Other: _________________________________________

 

This lease uses the following method for calculating utility charges between Tenant(s):

[ ] Home Square Footage
[ ] Number of Tenants
[ ] Even Split Between Tenants
[ ] Other:___________________________________________________________

 

Tenant agrees to pay the monthly utility charge to Landlord, plus a $__ service charge as part of each month’s rental payment.

Download: California Shared Utility Arrangement Disclosure Form (PDF)

Bed Bug Addendum

California rental agreements must include an addendum about the prevention and treatment of bed bugs. [12]

This is the recommended notice to include, in 10-point font at minimum:

Information about Bed Bugs

Bed Bug Appearance: Bed bugs have six legs. Adult bed bugs have flat bodies about 1/4 of an inch in length. Their color can vary from red and brown to copper colored. Young bed bugs are very small. Their bodies are about 1/16 of an inch in length. They have almost no color. When a bed bug feeds, its body swells, may lengthen, and becomes bright red, sometimes making it appear to be a different insect. Bed bugs do not fly. They can either crawl or be carried from place to place on objects, people, or animals. Bed bugs can be hard to find and identify because they are tiny and try to stay hidden.

 

Life Cycle and Reproduction: An average bed bug lives for about 10 months. Female bed bugs lay one to five eggs per day. Bed bugs grow to full adulthood in about 21 days.

 

Bed bugs can survive for months without feeding.

 

Bed Bug Bites: Because bed bugs usually feed at night, most people are bitten in their sleep and do not realize they were bitten. A person’s reaction to insect bites is an immune response and so varies from person to person. Sometimes the red welts caused by the bites will not be noticed until many days after a person was bitten, if at all.

 

Common signs and symptoms of a possible bed bug infestation:
-Small red to reddish brown fecal spots on mattresses, box springs, bed frames, mattresses, linens, upholstery, or walls.
-Molted bed bug skins, white, sticky eggs, or empty eggshells.
-Very heavily infested areas may have a characteristically sweet odor.
-Red, itchy bite marks, especially on the legs, arms, and other body parts exposed while sleeping. However, some people do not show bed bug lesions on their bodies even though bed bugs may have fed on them.

 

For more information, see the Internet Web sites of the United States Environmental Protection Agency and the National Pest Management Association.

This Bed Bug Addendum may also be included as part of the lease to ensure the tenant agrees.

Flood Zone Disclosure

A California landlord with actual knowledge that a rental property resides in a flood zone, must disclose this fact to the tenant. The disclosure must be in the rental agreement, printed in 8-point font at minimum. [13] The disclosure must include:

• Mention that the property is in a flood zone.
• Notice that information about hazards can be found at the Office of Emergency Services website, with a link provided.
• Notice that the landlord’s insurance does not cover personal loss, and a recommendation to pursue renters’ and flood insurance.
• Acknowledgement that the landlord needs to provide no further information than the above.

This is an example of a flood zone disclosure clause:

FLOOD ZONE DISCLOSURE. This property is located in a known flood zone, putting it at a higher risk of flooding. Landlord and Landlord’s insurer are NOT responsible for personal loss occurring at this rental unit due to flooding or other hazards. It is recommended that Tenant pursues renter’s insurance and flood insurance. Information about hazards can be found on the California Office of Emergency Services’ website at https://myhazards.caloes.ca.gov.

 

The above notice is pursuant to section 1632 of the Civil Code and absolves Landlord of liability to flood-related damages.

Download: California Flood Zone Disclosure Form (PDF)

Smoking Policy Disclosure

California landlords may limit or prohibit tobacco smoke on the property, including common areas. To do so, they must specify any such restrictions in a disclosure agreed with the tenant as part of the lease or an addendum.

Download: California Smoking Policy Disclosure Form (PDF)

Lead-Based Paint Disclosure

Federal law requires disclosing the risks posed by lead-based paints in all residences built before 1978. This law requires California landlords to:

• Fill out and attach this lead-based paint disclosure form to the lease agreement.
• Provide the tenant with an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)-approved pamphlet about the dangers of lead-based paint.
• Provide additional records or reports about the presence or hazards of any known lead-based paint in the unit. For multi-unit buildings with common areas, this includes information from building-wide evaluations.

For more information about this disclosure requirement, click here.

Download: California Lead-Based Paint Disclosure Form (PDF)

Optional Disclosures and Addenda (Recommended)

The following lease agreement disclosures and addenda are not required by California law. They are common inclusions in rental agreements to head off potential conflicts with tenants, or reduce liability for landlords.

Failure To Include Mandatory Disclosures

Failure to include a mandatory disclosure could result in fees, denial of eviction, refusal of the landlord’s other rights under the lease, and similar legal penalties. Disclosures outline important health, safety, and property information, and the law penalizes failure to disclose.

California allows tenants to sue landlords who fail to disclose known or suspected asbestos, mold, pets, or bed bugs on the property.

Lead-based paint hazards are particularly important as a disclosure. Landlords who don’t disclose the potential for lead hazards can face tens of thousands of dollars in fines per violation. [14]

City-Specific Lease Templates

Many California cities have specific required and recommended disclosures. These are some major cities with residential lease agreements which differ from the state template:

• Los Angeles
• San Diego
• San Jose
• San Francisco
• Fresno
• Long Beach
• Sacramento