The tenant with a question can find many resources online but it’s complicated: there are federal law and state statutes that establish a broad legal framework for tenancy. Local ordinance plays an important role in regulating rental housing too. In Beverly Hills rent stabilization ordinance specifies the maximum annual rent increase, allowed utility and other pass-through costs, and, most important, lawful reasons for tenancy termination.
Chapter 5 of the ordinance regulates tenancies that began at $600 or less. Chapter 6 regulates all other tenancies not including single-family homes, guest houses, most condominiums and buildings built after 1995. For more about the rent stabilization ordinance visit our Rent Stabilization Policy Explained page.
It is a lot to wrap the mind around! So we’ve put together these topic guides that we hope will make the thicket of federal, state and local laws more comprehensible. Unlike the valuable self-help resources on the ‘net (scroll down) our topic guides focus on Beverly Hills from policies to process. If our city’s rent stabilization materials were better we would point tenants there too, but they are generally outdated and insufficient. (We call it a communication breakdown.)
Check out these Renters Alliance guides:
- Rent Stabilization Policy Explained
- Rental Unit Registration: What You Need to Know About the Reported Rent
- About that Security Deposit…
- Exterior Code Violations: What You Need to Know
- Habitability Code Violations: What You Need to Know
- Pets in the Unit: Know Your Rights!
- Small Claims: A Tenant’s Guide
Renters Alliance is here to help tenants. We need to hear from your about your experience and your needs. We welcome your suggestions and questions. Drop us a line!
Resources Available Online
There are tenant self-help resources available online. Los Angeles County has posted informative guides including Before You Rent, Living in Your Rental Unit, and Moving Out of Your Rental Unit. State Department of Consumer Affairs has unfortunately discontinued its landlord-tenant outreach and education but still provide a useful tutorial on small claims court.
For general questions about tenant rights and obligations our first go-to is the state Department of Consumer Protection’s California Tenants Guide (2012). The state doesn’t update it any longer, unfortunately, but it is still a great go-to resource for many questions.
Nolo Press is among the most informative of the online resources for tenants. It also publishes indispensable titles including California Tenants’ Rights (2016) and Renters’ Rights (2015). For Fido there is Every Dog’s Legal Guide (2007). When we want to drill down to legal particulars, we look at it from the landlord’s perspective with California Landlord’s Law Book Volume 1: Rights and Responsibilities (2017) and California Landlord’s Law Book Volume 2: Evictions (2017).