Joseph Tobener is a partner at Tobener Ravenscroft. An attorney for more than fifteen years, Mr. Tobener draws on his specialized tenant law expertise to provide caring, easy-to-understand, and aggressive assistance to a diverse clientele. He has represented thousands of Bay Area residents on tenant law issues and earned millions on behalf of his clients. He has appeared on KALW and KQED and was featured in the SF Bay Guardian, the Daily Journal, and California Lawyer. Cases he has successfully litigated have been featured in the San Francisco Chronicle, the New York Times, Reuters, and Wired. His clients have included countless lawyers, high-tech executives, mobile home residents, the San Francisco Tenants Union, and several art collectives. One of his passions is working to preserve artist live/work housing. He also worked for Home Base, a homelessness law nonprofit and has been an adjunct professor at San Francisco State University and UC Hastings. The firm is dedicated to employee activism, and sponsors each of its lawyers to volunteer weekly in the community at housing rights nonprofits, donating nearly 500 attorney hours each year.
EDUCATION
JD, UC Hastings College of Law
MS, San Francisco State University
BA, University of California, Los Angeles
The City of Los Angeles Rent Stabilization Ordinance regulates how much a landlord can increase a tenant’s rent, and it prohibits eviction of tenants unless the landlord has a just-cause reason under the law to do so. The ordinance also covers what types of evictions require relocation payments to tenants and regulates buyout agreements. What […] Read More
Fights over security deposits are a common dispute between landlords and tenants. If your landlord is unfairly withholding your deposit, don’t panic. Here’s our step-by-step guide to suing in small claims court for your deposit. Step 1: You are required to send a demand letter first In California, a landlord has twenty-one days after a […] Read More
Tenants should take these pro-active steps to ensure they get the entire amount of their security deposit back from their landlord after they move out. Read More
Can a Realtor enter a unit? Yes. A real estate agent can enter a unit to show it to prospective tenants or prospective purchasers. Cal. Civ. Code § 1954. What must a Realtor do before they can enter a unit? To show the unit to prospective tenants or purchasers a Notice of Intent to Enter […] Read More
Effective Sep 1, 2020, the State of California has new eviction protections arising from the COVID-19 pandemic. Download the sample Declaration of Hardship here. Read More
Nonpayment evictions have been halted until Dec 31, 2020. This eviction protections apply to any unit in all states for certain tenants. Download the Sample Declaration here. Read More
The new legislation passed by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors to ban evictions for nonpayment of rent may be risky for tenants. Although the Board of Supervisors had good intentions, tenants who rely on this law to not pay rent may end up evicted. Landlord lawyers are already drafting a lawsuit against the City […] Read More
With nearly twenty years in business, the tenant lawyers at Tobener Ravenscroft LLP have helped 1000s of mobile home residents assert their legal rights. Please contact us to speak with one of our mobile home tenant lawyers. Mobile home park tenant rights are unique from rights that tenants have when they rent an apartment or […] Read More
With COVID-19 court closures, you can now strategically apply your security deposit to the last few months of rent, and the landlord cannot do anything about it. Historically, landlords could evict with a three-day notice if tenants tried to apply their deposit to rent. This eviction would then go on a tenant’s record. This has all […] Read More
Many residential and commercial tenants impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic need to end long-term leases. This guide will show tenants how to break a lease without paying any additional rent to a landlord. Read More
Joseph Tobener is a partner at Tobener Ravenscroft. An attorney for more than fifteen years, Mr. Tobener draws on his specialized tenant law expertise to provide caring, easy-to-understand, and aggressive assistance to a diverse clientele. He has represented thousands of Bay Area residents on tenant law issues and earned millions on behalf of his clients. He has appeared on KALW and KQED and was featured in the SF Bay Guardian, the Daily Journal, and California Lawyer. Cases he has successfully litigated have been featured in the San Francisco Chronicle, the New York Times, Reuters, and Wired. His clients have included countless lawyers, high-tech executives, mobile home residents, the San Francisco Tenants Union, and several art collectives. One of his passions is working to preserve artist live/work housing. He also worked for Home Base, a homelessness law nonprofit and has been an adjunct professor at San Francisco State University and UC Hastings. The firm is dedicated to employee activism, and sponsors each of its lawyers to volunteer weekly in the community at housing rights nonprofits, donating nearly 500 attorney hours each year.