The act requires a landlord to:Comply with applicable court rules governing the protection and redaction of personal identifying information in eviction filings; andRedact personal identifying information from supporting documents submitted to a court. The act also requires a landlord to include in all rental applications:A notice to prospective tenants regarding the information and data the landlord will attempt to access when conducting a tenant screening;A general description of the factors the landlord will consider when evaluating a rental application, including a prospective tenant's credit history, rental history, income, and criminal background, if applicable; andAn indication of whether the landlord uses a third-party tenant screening service and, if so, the name of the service.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
The bill limits the number of forcible entry and detainer (eviction) actions that a county court schedules on one business day. The bill prohibits including a minor defendant as a named defendant in an eviction complaint when a parent or adult guardian is also listed as a defendant on the same complaint. The bill prohibits a court from entering judgment without a trial or a hearing when a tenant's answer to an eviction complaint expresses an intent to cure nonpayment. The bill specifies that the following reasons excuse a tenant from filing a timely written answer to an eviction complaint: A hospitalization, a sickness or injury, a reasonable accommodation request for a disability, a lack of proper service, a transportation issue, a complication related to electronic filing that was reasonably outside of the tenant's control, and a court issue that was reasonably outside of the tenant's control. When a tenant in an eviction action asserts that they were affected by one of the specified reasons, the bill requires a court to:Relieve a tenant from final judgment, vacate any judgment or writ of restitution that was issued, and provide the tenant with a reasonable amount of time to file an answer;Permit additional and amended pleadings; andExtend the trial date. The bill repeals appeals bond in eviction cases. The bill extends the time for executing a writ of restitution in an eviction action from 48 hours to 30 days, except in cases involving substantial violations. The bill prohibits the execution of writs in eviction actions during inclement weather.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)
The bill requires a plaintiff that files a complaint concerning the unlawful detention of real property to include certain documentation with the complaint.The bill requires that if a landlord posts a written demand or notice, the landlord must:Include in the demand or notice certain information; andRedact from the document certain personal identifying information.Under current law, when a landlord commences an action for forcible entry and detainer, any court record of the action is a suppressed court record. If the court issues an order granting the landlord possession of the premises, the record is no longer a suppressed court record unless the parties agree that the record remain suppressed. Under the bill, such a court record remains suppressed unless it concerns a substantial violation of the lease. A court may publish a judicial opinion concerning the action if the names and identifiers of the parties are anonymized.The bill requires a landlord to provide a tenant at least one rent payment option that does not require the tenant to access an online portal or pay a transaction fee.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)
The act authorizes landlords to use a ratio utility billing system to allocate utility charges for a residential premises to individual tenants. The landlord may charge tenants a utility bill using a ratio utility billing system if the landlord meets certain requirements, such as:The aggregate amount billed to all tenants does not exceed the amount charged by the utility provider for service to the entire residential premises;The landlord does not apply a fee or other charge to the tenant in addition to the actual charges from the utility;The utility costs for common areas or shared facilities are excluded from the charges to the tenant; andThe landlord clearly discloses the method of allocation for the dwelling unit in the tenant's rental agreement. For residential premises constructed with permits applied for on or after July 1, 2027, utility service must be metered directly by the utility provider or by a submeter.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
Current law prohibits a landlord from requiring a tenant to submit a security deposit in an amount that exceeds 2 monthly rent payments. The act creates an exception to this prohibition for cases in which a buyer and a seller of residential real property have executed a post-closing occupancy agreement in connection with the sale. The exception takes effect January 1, 2027.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)
