Berkeley Rent Ordinance
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Eviction Requires Just Cause
Like Oakland and San Francisco, Berkeley has a rent ordinance that requires just cause for evicting tenants and protects tenants with rent control. That said, the Berkeley, Oakland, and San Francisco rent ordinances are all different, and you should consult a knowledgeable tenant’s attorney before making assumptions.
The City of Berkeley Rent Stabilization Board maintains an informative website about tenants’ rights in Berkeley.
The Berkeley Rent Ordinance requires just cause for eviction:
Under the Berkeley Rent Ordinance, a landlord shall not be entitled to recover possession of a rental unit, which includes any housing services connected with the property, unless the existence of one of 11 grounds set forth in section 13.76.130 is established.
The Berkeley Rent Ordinance provides tenants rent control in Berkeley and sets annual rental increase ceilings for rental units in Berkeley.
The Berkeley Rent Ordinance prohibits pretextual owner move-ins:
Section 13.76.130(A)(9)(a) provides that a landlord may recover possession of a rental unit for his own use when he does so “in good faith with honest intent and without ulterior motive.” A landlord may not, however, recover possession for his own use where “a comparable unit, owned by the landlord in the City of Berkeley, was, at the time of the landlord’s decision to seek to recover possession of the rental unit, already vacant and available, or if a comparable unit, owned by the landlord in the City of Berkeley, thereafter becomes vacant at any time until the earlier of the tenant’s surrender of possession of the premises or the entry of a judgment of a court of competent jurisdiction awarding possession of the premises to the landlord.” Berkeley Municipal Code § 13.76.130(A)(9)(d).
Retaliatory Evictions Are Illegal Under Berkeley’s Rent Ordinance
Additionally, the Berkeley Rent Ordinance provides that “[n]o landlord may threaten to bring, or bring, an action to recover possession, cause the tenant to quit the unit involuntarily, serve any notice to quit or notice of termination of tenancy, decrease any services or increase the rent where the landlord’s intent is retaliation against the tenant for the tenant’s assertion or exercise of rights under this chapter.” Berkeley Municipal Code § 13.76.140.
If you have been subject to an unlawful eviction, unlawful rent increase, or retaliatory eviction in Berkeley, California, your landlord may have violated the Berkeley Rent Ordinance and you may be entitled to damages.
Contact our experienced Berkeley Tenant’s attorney at BV Law today for a free consultation regarding your Berkeley landlord-tenant dispute. You can also reach us by telephone at 415-835-6777. To see our outstanding results in Bay Area landlord-tenant cases, please see our Testimonials page or our Firm Results.
