California residential lease agreement

curl -X POST https://dealroom.todo.law/api/v1/agent/contracts \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer drk_YOUR_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -H "Idempotency-Key: $(uuidgen)" \
  -d '{
    "contractType": "RESIDENTIAL_TENANCY_US_CA",
    "language": "en",
    "party": {
      "legalName": "Your company"
    },
    "counterparty": {
      "legalName": "The other company"
    },
    "terms": {
      "property-address": "<property-address>",
      "monthly-rent": "10000"
    },
    "inline": "md"
  }'

What it is and when it is used

A California residential lease agreement is the contract a landlord uses to rent a home in California to a tenant. It sets out how long the tenancy lasts, the rent and how it may change, the deposit, the house rules on pets and subletting, who handles repairs, and how the tenancy can end early.

A residential lease is a consumer contract. California tenant protections are set by statute and most cannot be waived: the implied warranty of habitability cannot be contracted away, and a term that tries to waive a key tenant right is void as to that term. The Dealroom skill is built on that basis. It does not offer options that fall below a statutory floor, and it negotiates the points the law leaves open.

The document has two parts. Seven negotiable clauses carry the choices the parties make. Fourteen standard clauses, which are not negotiated, set out the statutory frame, each with its legal source. Four of them are mandatory disclosures that cannot be removed.

Who signs it and in which role

Two parties sign:

• The landlord, who rents out the home.
• The tenant, who will live in it.

The parties fill in the full address of the home and the monthly rent. If they choose the option that allows pets with approval, they also state the pet deposit.

Key clauses

Lease term

The tenancy may be month-to-month, or run for a set period of six months, one year or two years and then continue month-to-month. The term matters beyond the end date: notice periods depend on how long the tenant has lived in the home (30 days under a year, 60 days at a year or more for the landlord), and just-cause eviction protection under AB 1482 applies once the tenant has occupied for twelve months.

Rent increases

The rent may stay the same for the whole lease, rise once a year up to the state maximum under AB 1482, follow a cost-of-living adjustment based on the regional consumer price index (still within the state cap), or rise by a set 3% each year. The set 3% option carries a warning, because a local rent-control ordinance may impose a lower cap that prevails. Notice of an increase is required: 30 days for increases of 10% or less, and 90 days for larger ones.

Security deposit

The options are no deposit (the tenant still pays for damage beyond normal wear and tear), half a month's rent, or one month's rent, which is the legal maximum for most landlords under AB 12. The one-month option carries a warning that the small-landlord exception is not offered. Any deposit must be returned within 21 days of move-out, with an itemised statement of deductions.

Pet policy

No pets; pets allowed with the landlord's written approval and a separate pet deposit (cats, dogs under 40 lbs, caged birds and fish, with the tenant keeping liability insurance); or pets allowed, with the tenant answering for damage and following local and homeowners' association rules. Under every option, service and emotional support animals are always allowed and cannot be charged a pet deposit or pet rent. The pet deposit and the security deposit together must stay within the statutory cap.

Subletting and assignment

Subletting and assignment may be prohibited; allowed with the landlord's written permission, which cannot be refused without a good reason, on 30 days' notice with the new occupant's name and references; or allowed on 30 days' written notice alone, with the tenant remaining responsible for the lease.

Maintenance and habitability

The landlord may handle all repairs, including appliances, with non-emergency repairs done within 30 days of a written report; responsibility may be shared, with the landlord handling the major systems and the tenant keeping the home clean and handling small fixes under $150; or the tenant may take on routine maintenance and repairs up to $500 each, including appliances, pest control and yard work. The last option carries a warning: a tenant repair duty can never reach anything covered by the implied warranty of habitability.

Early termination

Either side may end the lease on 60 days' notice with no fee; the tenant may leave on 30 days' notice and pay one month's rent; or the tenant may leave on 60 days' notice and pay two months' rent, or else remain liable for rent until a new tenant moves in or the lease ends. In the fee options the landlord must make reasonable efforts to re-let. In every option, the survivor's right to leave on 14 days' notice under Civil Code section 1946.7 is preserved.

The standard clauses also cover governing law, deposit rules, rent and late charges (a late charge must be a reasonable estimate of the landlord's loss), the implied warranty of habitability with the tenant's repair-and-deduct remedy, landlord entry on 24 hours' written notice, just-cause eviction with a relocation payment of one month's rent for no-fault terminations, service of notices, reciprocal attorneys' fees, the Superior Court of the county where the home is located (with optional mediation), and severability. The four mandatory disclosures are lead-based paint (for homes built before 1978), the Megan's Law registry notice, bedbugs, and smoke and carbon monoxide detectors.

What the two sides usually negotiate

The landlord usually asks for a longer fixed term, the maximum deposit, restrictive subletting, tenant-side repairs and a fee for early departure. The tenant usually asks for month-to-month flexibility, a lower deposit, fixed rent, landlord-side maintenance and an exit with no fee.

The skill points out that the genuinely open ground is the lease term, pets, subletting and the maintenance split. The deposit and rent increases look open but are capped by statute: a landlord who agrees to "only one month" of deposit is conceding what AB 12 already requires.

When the two sides disagree, Dealroom proposes the balanced positions in the skill:

• Lease term: six months, then month-to-month.
• Rent increases: up to the state maximum under AB 1482.
• Security deposit: half a month's rent, the option nearest the centre.
• Pets: allowed with approval and a pet deposit.
• Subletting: allowed with written permission that cannot be unreasonably refused.
• Maintenance: shared responsibility.
• Early termination: 30 days' notice and one month's rent.

Jurisdictions and languages Dealroom supports for it

Dealroom offers this lease for California only, and drafts it in English only. It is meant for homes located in California; Dealroom does not offer it for homes in other US states. Disputes go to the Superior Court of the county where the home is located, without limiting small claims or the tenant's protection against retaliation.

For a home elsewhere, Dealroom offers separate residential tenancy skills built on local law:

• an assured periodic tenancy for England and Wales; and
• a Spanish residential lease, drafted in Spanish.

The landlord and the tenant can use Dealroom together, each stating their preferences, or one side can prepare the lease alone.

Common mistakes

• Charging more than one month's deposit. AB 12 caps it for most landlords, and a pet deposit counts toward the same cap.
• Treating a support animal as a pet. Service and emotional support animals cannot be excluded or charged a pet deposit or pet rent.
• Ignoring local rent control. AB 1482 is a ceiling; a city ordinance may set a lower one.
• Pushing habitability repairs onto the tenant. The implied warranty cannot be waived, whatever the repair clause says.
• Leaving out the disclosures. Lead paint, Megan's Law, bedbug and detector disclosures are required.
• Forgetting just-cause protection. After twelve months, the landlord needs a stated just cause to end the tenancy, and a no-fault ending carries a relocation payment.
• Setting an exit fee that works as a penalty. A large early termination fee risks being unenforceable, and the survivor's 14-day right always applies.