California Apartment Association

On Dec. 1, 2015, the Mountain View City Council approved a “right to a lease” law. Owners are required to provide notice of the law and to offer residents the option of a 6- or 12-month fixed-term lease.

Specifically,
New tenants and tenants currently on lease: A written lease must be offered to every prospective tenant renting a rental beginning Jan. 7, 2016, and to tenants whose pre-existing leases expire after Jan. 7, 2016.
Month-to-month tenants: For rental units not under a written lease (month-to-month) on Jan. 7, 2016, the landlord has until March 1, 2016, to offer a written lease to these tenants.

The ordinance applies to rental property owners who rent out three or more units in a single structure.

Making the offer

Once the owner “wishes to rent” the unit to the applicant, the owner is required to offer in writing a written lease with a 6- or 12-month term (at tenant’s election) to the prospective tenant. The owner is not required to offer additional choices, such as a month-to-month or other lease terms (for example three months, two years). The tenant’s rejection or acceptance of the owner’s offer must be in writing. CAA’s Form 58.0 Mountain View Addendum confirms the making of the offer and the tenant’s acceptance or rejection. The offer has to be made by March 1, 2016. The ordinance does not specify a time for the tenant to accept/reject the offer. If a tenant signs a 6- or 12-month lease, the ordinance states that the owner has complied with the law with respect to providing the offer.

The new lease term

The ordinance does not address when the new lease term is to begin. According to the city, the leases should start within a couple months of the tenant accepting the 6- or 12-month lease offer. This will provide the opportunity to somewhat stagger renewal dates. Tenant requests for earlier start dates should be granted when practicable.

Ongoing duty to offer a lease

If the existing month-to-month residents do not choose a fixed term lease, the lease options must be offered again, annually.

Once a lease term expires, if the owner wishes to renew the tenancy, the owner must again offer the 6- or 12-month options. CAA recommends that notice of non-renewal or notice of an offer to renew be provided at least 60 days prior to the end of the lease. The owner is not required to renew the lease. If the tenancy is renewed, a new addendum should accompany the new rental/lease agreement. The addendum itself does not extend the agreement. The parties must still enter into the actual agreement. CAA recommends that owners take this opportunity to enter into an updated agreement, using a form such as CAA’s 2.0/2.1-REN Renewal Rental/Lease Agreement.

Rent increases

The ordinance does not restrict the amount of rent that can be charged; the price for a lease, however,  cannot exceed the price for a month-to-month option. When making these lease offers, CAA encourages owners to continue to exercise moderation if they are contemplating adjusting the resident’s rent. For month-to-month tenancies, California law requires 30 or 60 days’ notice to be provided for rent increases, depending on the amount of the increase. CAA recommends that this 30/60 day notice also be provided in the context of lease renewal.

More information: City of Mountain View’s right-to-lease ordinance page.