At the present time, California requires that a month-to-month tenant
who has lived in the building for one year or more must be given 60
days notice. This will be in effect until January 1, 2006 (unless a
later statute alters the requirement).
Here you'll find an excellent discussion of the changes in the law:
"Effective January 1, 2003 until January 1, 2006, a landlord must
provide a month-to-month periodic tenant with an additional 30 days
notice to terminate the tenancy if the tenant has lived in the
dwelling for one year or more. Thus, the notice requirement is now a
total of 60 days, instead of 30 days.
This 60-day notice requirement has already been in effect since
January 1, 2002 for the cities of Los Angeles, Santa Monica, and West
Hollywood. The Legislature has now extended the rule to apply to
tenancies throughout the State of California.
The legislative intent of this law is to accommodate tenants who may
need more time in this tight rental market to make new housing
arrangements. Hence, the 60-day notice requirement applies to
landlords, whereas a tenant who terminates a periodic tenancy may do
so with a 30-day notice.
There are certain situations where the 60-day notice is not required.
First, it does not apply if the landlord enters into a fixed-term
lease, such as a one-year lease agreement. Second, a 30-day notice is
sufficient for tenants who have lived in the property for less than
one year. Third, landlords selling their properties may give a 30-day
notice if all of the following six conditions are met:
1. The owner has entered into a contract to sell the dwelling or
unit to a bona fide purchaser for value;
2. The buyer is a natural person(s);
3. The buyer in good faith intends to live in the property for at
least one year after termination of the tenancy;
4. The termination notice is given within 120 days of opening escrow;
5. The owner has established an escrow with a licensed escrow
officer, or a licensed real estate broker; and
6. The dwelling or unit is alienable separate from the title to any
other dwelling unit."
Scott G. Harrison Realtor
http://scottgharrison.homestead.com/2003RentalLaw_New.html
From the website of the California Department of Consumer Affairs,
here is a very simple explanation:
"A landlord can end a periodic tenancy (for example, a month-to-month
tenancy) by giving the tenant proper advance written notice. If you
have lived in the rental unit for a year or more, your landlord must
give you 60 days' advance written notice that the tenancy will end.
However, the landlord can give you 30 days' advance written notice in
either of the following situations:
You have lived in the rental unit less than one year; or
The landlord has contracted to sell the rental unit to another person
who intends to occupy the unit for at least a year after the tenancy
ends."
CA Dept of Consumer Affairs: Giving and Receiving Proper Notice
http://www.dca.ca.gov/legal/landlordbook/moving-out.htm
The actual statutes related to this matter may be read here:
FindLaw: CALIFORNIA CIVIL CODE SECTION 1940-1954.1
http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/cacodes/civ/1940-1954.1.html
It should be noted that the 60-day requirement does NOT apply to a
tenant who fails to pay rent. Section 1161 of the code, which mandates
a three-day notice in such cases, is still in effect:
"Section 1946 of the Civil Code gives a landlord the right to
terminate a month-to-month tenancy after giving a tenant a 30-Day
Notice to Quit. Section 1161 of the California Code of Civil Procedure
allows a landlord to terminate a tenancy after giving a tenant a
Three-Day Notice to Quit if a tenant fails to pay rent or fails to
perform one of the terms of his or her lease.
SB 1403 increases the notice period required to terminate a tenancy
under Civil Code Section 1946 from 30 to 60 days if the tenant has
resided in his or her unit for one year or longer. Three-Day Notices
to Pay Rent or Quit, or to Perform an Obligation of the Rental
Agreement or Quit, have not been changed by SB 1403. So you can still
evict a tenant for nonpayment of rent after a three-day notice."
SF Apartment Magazine: 60-Day Notices Now Required for Most Evictions
and Other Changes to Landlord-Tenant Law
http://www.sfaa.org/magazine/archives/2002/1102/features/1102.herzig.html
Here you can read the text of Section 1161, concerning eviction for
nonpayment of rent:
FindLaw: CALIFORNIA CODE OF CIVIL PROCEDURE SECTION 1159-1179a
http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/cacodes/ccp/1159-1179a.html
Google search strategy:
Google Web Search: california "civil code" notice landlord
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&q=california+%22civil+code%22+notice+landlord
I hope this helps. Please keep in mind that Google Answers is not a
source of authoritative legal information or advice. The material I've
presented above is not a substitute for the services of a legal
professional.
Best regards,
pinkfreud |
