Oakland Tenant Lawyers

Oakland & Berkeley Tenant Rights Law Firm

Our tenant lawyers have helped more than 10,000 renters successful navigate threats of evictions, Owner move-in evictions, Ellis Act evictions, landlord harassment, discrimination, repair and habitability issues, and more. Our knowledge of the intricacies of state and local renter’s rights is unmatched. We litigate aggressively, maximize leverage, and have an impeccable success rate. Most importantly, we understand how stressful it is to be a tenant in the Bay Area and are fiercely committed to the protection of and expansion of tenant rights.

Our tenant lawyers have seen firsthand the results of landlords attempting to take advantage of tenants in order to maximize their profits. Landlords operate on the assumption that tenants do not know their rights and do not have the means to protect themselves through legal representation. The balance of power between landlords and tenants is vastly unequal. We seek to reduce this inequity by representing tenants only and fighting for a just outcome on their behalf.

Tenants rights and protections in the City of Oakland are increasingly under threat and undermined by unscrupulous landlords. Recently, Oakland’s Tenant Protection Ordinance (TPO) was expanded to address the growing need to safeguard renter protections. Oakland now has some of the strongest rent control and eviction control laws in the country.

Oakland Rent Control

The Oakland City Council adopted the Rent Adjustment Program (RAP) Ordinance (OMC Chapter 8.22) in 1980. This ordinance sets the maximum annual rent increase based on the annual CPI increase, handles rent adjustments for claims of decreases in housing services and handles other rent related matters. The purpose of this program is to foster fair housing for a diverse population of renters and enforce the Rent Adjustment Ordinance set out by the City of Oakland. If you have questions or concerns about a rent increase or the timing of a rent increase, please call an Oakland tenant attorney.

Oakland Rent Control Guide →

Oakland Relocation Program

Before sending a tenant a written notice to vacate for substantial repairs, the landlord must obtain all necessary permits from the City of Oakland. The eviction must be in good faith and be for substantial repairs that cannot be completed while the unit is occupied. The substantial repairs must be necessary either to bring the property into compliance with applicable codes and laws affecting health and safety of tenants of the building, or under an outstanding notice of code violations affecting the health and safety of tenants of the building. You will want to speak to an experienced Oakland tenant lawyer to discuss your options.

Read About The Oakland Relocation Program →

Oakland Buyout Ordinance

What units are covered by the Oakland Buyout Ordinance? The Oakland Buyout Ordinance applies to all residential rental units in Oakland, except publicly owned or operated rentals.

What is my landlord required to do before approaching me about a buyout? The Oakland Buyout Ordinance requires landlords to provide each tenant in a rental unit with a City approved form informing each tenant that, in part: (i) the tenant can refuse to participate buyout negotiations; (ii) the landlord cannot retaliate against a tenant for refusing to participate in buyout negotiations; (iii) following a tenant’s refusal to engage in buyout negotiations, repeated attempts to start buyout negotiations constitute harassment; (v) the tenant has twenty-five days to rescind a buyout, but can agree to a shorter period of not less than fifteen days; (vi) the tenant may be eligible for relocation payments; (vii) an owner who violates the Oakland Buyout Ordinance may face penalties if the tenant is elderly, disabled, or catastrophically ill.

Oakland Buyout Ordinance FAQs →

Oakland Evictions & Protections

All residential rental units in Oakland are covered by the Oakland Just Cause for Eviction Ordinance, with the following exceptions:

• Rental units in any hospital, skilled nursing facility, or health facility;
• Rental units in a nonprofit facility that has the primary purpose of providing short-term treatment, assistance, or therapy for alcohol, drug, or other substance abuse and the housing is provided incident to the recovery program, and where the client has been informed in writing of the temporary or transitional nature of the housing at its inception;
• Rental units in a nonprofit facility which provides a structured living environment that has the primary purpose of helping homeless persons obtain the skills necessary for independent living in permanent housing and where occupancy is restricted to a limited and specific period of time of not more than twenty-four months and where the client has been informed in writing of the temporary or transitional nature of the housing at its inception

Oakland Rent Control FAQs →

Landlord Harassment

Landlord harassment is illegal. California state law and local city ordinances protect tenants against harassment. Whether physical or verbal, all landlord harassment has the same goal—to force the tenant to move out. The Oakland Rent Ordinance’s prohibition against landlord harassment is similar to San Francisco’s ordinance. Oakland, Cal., Mun. Code § 8.22.600. Under Oakland’s Tenant Protection Ordinance (TPO). Call our Oakland Tenant Lawyers Today if your landlord is harassing you.

Laws Against Landlord Harassment →