Does San Diego Have Rent Control? Caps, Notice, and Relocation

San Diego does not have traditional rent control, but renters are protected by two overlapping laws that cap most rent increases and limit when a landlord can end a tenancy. The California Tenant Protection Act of 2019 (AB 1482) sets the statewide ceiling on annual rent hikes, and the City of San Diego’s Residential Tenant Protections Ordinance layers stronger eviction rules and larger relocation payments on top of it. For most tenants in older buildings, the practical result is a hard cap on yearly increases and a requirement that landlords have a legitimate reason before asking you to leave.

How Much Rent Can Be Raised in 2025 and 2026

For covered properties in San Diego, the maximum rent increase taking effect between August 1, 2025, and July 31, 2026, is 8.8%. That figure is the 5% base allowed by state law plus a 3.8% local Consumer Price Index adjustment. The previous 12-month period, running from August 2024 through July 2025, was capped at 8.6%.

The CPI piece recalculates every year, so the exact number shifts, but the formula is fixed: 5% plus local CPI, capped at 10% total no matter how high inflation climbs. The increase is measured against the lowest rent you paid at any point in the past 12 months, and short-term discounts or concessions don’t lower that baseline for the landlord’s benefit.¹

A landlord can split an increase into two separate bumps within the same 12-month window, but the combined total still can’t go over the annual cap.² AB 1482’s protections are currently scheduled to sunset on January 1, 2030, unless the legislature extends them.

Which Rentals Are Covered

Both the state cap and the local ordinance apply broadly, but not universally. The clearest dividing line is building age: housing that received its certificate of occupancy within the last 15 years is exempt from the rent cap.³ This 15-year window rolls forward, so a building completed in 2011 became covered in 2026. Most of San Diego’s older apartment stock falls under the law.

Several categories are exempt:

Single-family homes and condos, if the owner is a natural person (not a corporation, REIT, or LLC with a corporate member) and provides the required written exemption notice to the tenant.²
Owner-occupied duplexes where the owner lives in one of the two units as a primary residence.
New construction less than 15 years old.
Deed-restricted affordable housing already governed by other programs.

The exemption notice for single-family homes and condos is not a technicality. For any tenancy that started or renewed on or after July 1, 2020, the exemption language must appear in the written rental agreement. If the landlord never provided it, the property doesn’t qualify for the exemption, and the rent cap applies.²

Notice Your Landlord Must Give

Any rent increase requires written notice. If the increase is 10% or less of your rent over the past 12 months, the landlord must give at least 30 days’ notice. If the increase goes above 10% when combined with other hikes in the same 12-month window, the required notice stretches to 90 days.⁴

Because AB 1482 already holds covered properties to a 10% ceiling, the 90-day notice mostly applies to exempt properties. If you live in an exempt unit and your landlord wants to raise your rent by more than 10%, that 90-day window is often your main protection.

When a Landlord Can End Your Tenancy

San Diego tenants get just cause eviction protections from both the state and the city, and the local rule is the stronger of the two on timing.

State Rule: After 12 Months

Under AB 1482, once you have continuously and lawfully occupied your rental for 12 months, your landlord needs a valid, stated reason to end your tenancy.⁵ If other adults joined the lease later, the clock has its own wrinkles: protection kicks in once all tenants hit 12 months or at least one hits 24.

Valid reasons split into two groups. At-fault reasons include nonpayment of rent, material lease violations, nuisance, criminal activity on the premises, unauthorized subletting, and refusing lawful entry. No-fault reasons include an owner or qualifying family member moving in, withdrawing the unit from the rental market, complying with a government or court order, and demolition or substantial remodeling.⁵

San Diego’s Rule: From Day One

The City of San Diego’s ordinance requires just cause from the first day of the tenancy, with a narrow exception only for fixed-term leases of three months or less.⁶ The local grounds mirror state law but add tighter rules around substantial remodel evictions, including a requirement that the landlord give tenants more information about the planned work and when they can return.⁷

A substantial remodel only counts if it involves major structural, electrical, plumbing, or mechanical work that requires a permit, or hazardous materials abatement like lead or asbestos. The work must be unsafe to perform with the tenant in place and must require the unit to be vacant for at least 30 days. Painting, decorating, and minor repairs don’t qualify.⁵ Under SB 567, effective in 2024, the landlord must attach copies of the required permits to the termination notice, describe the specific work planned, and tell you about your right to return if the work isn’t started or completed.⁸

Relocation Money You’re Owed

If your landlord ends your tenancy for a no-fault reason, you’re entitled to financial help with moving. San Diego tenants get the larger of the two amounts the law provides.

State law (AB 1482): one month’s rent, paid within 15 calendar days of the termination notice, or a waiver of your final month’s rent. If the landlord doesn’t comply, the termination notice is void.⁵
San Diego local ordinance: two months’ rent, or three months’ rent if you are a senior or a person with a disability. The landlord can alternatively waive an equivalent amount of rent through the end of the tenancy. This is separate from the security deposit the landlord owes you back.⁷

The local amount is credited against the state requirement, so you collect the higher figure, not both. For San Diego tenants in covered units, that’s two or three months’ rent. When multiple tenants share a lease, the landlord can make one combined payment to all tenants named on it.⁷

What Happens If Your Landlord Breaks the Rules

Landlords who try to evict without following these rules face serious consequences. Under SB 567, a landlord who tries to recover possession in material violation of the just cause requirements is liable for actual damages, reasonable attorney’s fees at the court’s discretion, and up to three times actual damages if the conduct was willful or fraudulent.⁸ The California Attorney General and local city attorneys can seek injunctions as well.

For owner move-in evictions, the person who claimed they’d move in must actually occupy the unit within 90 days and live there as a primary residence for at least 12 consecutive months. If they don’t, the landlord must offer the former tenant the unit back at the old rent and reimburse moving expenses beyond the relocation already paid.⁸

San Diego’s local ordinance adds its own remedies. Tenants can recover attorney’s fees and exemplary damages, which gives landlords a strong financial reason to follow the rules.⁶ Any lease clause that tries to waive your rights under the rent cap or just cause protections is void as a matter of public policy, so a provision agreeing to unlimited increases, for example, is unenforceable.²

Where to Get Help in San Diego

If you think your landlord has issued an illegal rent increase or an improper termination notice, free help is available. The Legal Aid Society of San Diego represents low-income tenants facing unlawful rent hikes or wrongful evictions. CSA San Diego County offers free rental counseling and works to prevent housing discrimination.⁹ The City of San Diego also requires landlords to give tenants educational materials about their rights at the start of a tenancy, so check your lease packet for the notice.⁶

1
California Legislative Information. California Civil Code 1947.12
2
California Legislative Information. AB-1482 Tenant Protection Act of 2019
3
California Legislative Information. California Code CIV 1947.12
4
California Legislative Information. California Civil Code 827
5
California Legislative Information. California Civil Code 1946.2
6
City of San Diego. Housing and Tenant Protections
7
City of San Diego. San Diego Municipal Code Chapter 9, Article 8, Division 7
8
California Legislative Information. SB-567
9
CSA San Diego County. About CSA San Diego County