San Francisco, CA — landlord and rental rules

The Rent Ordinance limits increases for covered units, generally in buildings constructed before 13 June 1979; state law exempts most separately alienable single-family homes and condominiums from the local rent ceiling.

Construction date alone is not a coverage decision. Confirm the unit in the Rent Board portal, including condominium, owner-occupancy, subsidy, and lawful-new-construction status.

Construction

Built before 1980

In effect since 1979-06-13.

The Tenant Protection Act caps annual rent increases at 5% plus CPI, with a hard ceiling of 10%, on housing built more than 15 years ago.

The 15-year window rolls forward, so a building drifts into coverage with age rather than being fixed by its construction date at purchase.

Annual cap

10%

Construction

Built before 2011

In effect since 2020-01-01.

Costa-Hawkins exempts post-1995 construction and single-family homes and condominiums from *local* rent control, and preserves the landlord's right to reset rent to market on vacancy.

It does not help at the affordable end, because affordable stock is old stock: the buildings a small investor can actually buy are usually the ones Costa-Hawkins does not exempt.

Vacancy decontrol

Yes — rent resets on vacancy

Construction

Built after 1995

The Rent Ordinance requires an authorised just cause for most residential evictions, including many single-family homes, condominiums, and post-1979 units that are exempt from local rent ceilings.

Eviction coverage is broader than rent-ceiling coverage and reaches most privately rented dwelling units.

Do not use a rent-ceiling exemption as an eviction exemption. Confirm the cause, notice, filing, relocation, and owner-move-in restrictions with the Rent Board before acting.

Unit counts

1+ units

Owners of residential property must report unit information to the Rent Board Housing Inventory annually; reporting covers owner-occupied, vacant, and non-owner-occupied units, including single-family homes and condominiums.

Housing Inventory reporting applies to residential units broadly, not only rent-controlled apartments.

The ordinance calls this a housing inventory rather than a rental registry. Failure to report can suspend the license to impose annual or banked increases on a covered tenancy.

Unit counts

1+ units

In effect since 2022-07-01.

FAIR Plan policies are up 139% since 2021, habitability claims are now commonly excluded, and earthquake cover is excluded from every standard policy.

Get a bindable quote before removing contingencies. An insurance assumption carried over from another state is the single largest silent error in a California pro forma.

Fair plan increase since2021

139%