The City of Oxnard Tenant Protection and Rent Stabilization Ordinances protect tenants from unjust evictions without a cause and from unreasonable rent increases. The law also provides relocation benefits for tenants who are evicted for a no-fault reason and prohibits landlords from harassing tenants.
THE CITY OF OXNARD JUST-CAUSE FOR EVICTION PROTECTION
What units are covered by the City of Oxnard Just Cause Eviction and Tenant Protection Ordinance?
The ordinance applies to all residential units where the tenant has continuously and lawfully occupied the unit for thirty days or more, unless the unit falls under one of the following exemptions:
- Transient and tourist hotels and lawful short-term vacation rentals.
- Housing in a nonprofit hospital, religious facility, extended care facility, licensed residential care facility for the elderly, or adult residential facility.
- Dormitories operated by institutions of higher education or K-12 schools .
- Units where a tenant shares a bathroom or kitchen with the owner who maintains a unit at the property as a principal residence.
- Single-family, owner-occupied residences, including a residence in which the owner-occupant rents or leases no more than two bedrooms.
- A duplex in which the owner has continuously occupied one of the units as a principal place of residence at the beginning of tenancy. Oxnard, Cal. City Code § 27-7
Does my tenancy fall under the State of California Tenant Protection Act of 2019 or the City of Oxnard Just Cause Eviction and Tenant Protection Ordinance?
The just-cause protections under the California Tenant Protection Act of 2019 (“California Rent Control”) apply to all units in the City of Oxnard that are not covered by the City of Oxnard Just Cause Eviction and Tenant Protection Ordinance and that otherwise meet the requirements of state eviction protection. If your Oxnard unit is one of the exempt buildings under the City’s ordinance, please read our guide to determine if your unit is covered by California Rent Control.
What are the just-cause reasons for eviction for units under the City of Oxnard Just Cause Eviction and Tenant Protection Ordinance?
A landlord can only evict a tenant for an at-fault or no-fault just cause reason.
At-fault reasons for eviction are the following:
- Nonpayment of rent.
- Breach of a material term of the lease and the tenant continues the breach after the landlord issues a written notice to correct the violation.
- Adding a minor dependent to the unit or adding a one-for-one roommate replacement will not be considered a material breach of the lease.
- Maintaining, committing, or permitting the maintenance or commission of a nuisance.
- Committing waste.
- Criminal activity on the property, including any common areas, or any threat of a crime
- Refusing to sign an extension of a written lease if the proposed extension is similar in duration and has substantially identical terms, and the landlord makes the request either thirty days before or after the expiration of the existing written lease.
- Adding a provision to allow the landlord to terminate the lease for occupancy by the owner or the owner’s spouse, domestic partner, child, grandchild, parent, or grandparent is considered a “similar” lease term.
- Assigning or subletting the unit in violation of the lease agreement, unless the tenant asked for permission in writing, still lives in the unit as their main home, and the new subtenant is a one-for-one roommate replacement.
- Refusing to permit landlord access to the unit.
- Using the premises for an unlawful purpose.
- Failing to vacate after termination as an employee, agent, or a licensee, unless the occupant’s employment, agency, or licensee status began while they were already a tenant.
- Failing to move out after the tenant provides the landlord with an intent to move. Oxnard, Cal. City Code § 27-3.
No-fault reasons for eviction are the following:
- Owner or relative move-in.
- Ellis Act eviction.
- A government order relating to habitability that necessitates vacating the property.
- Intent to demolish or to substantially remodel the property.
Oxnard, Cal. City Code § 27-4.
What are the requirements for an owner- or relative-move-in eviction under the City of Oxnard Just Cause Eviction and Tenant Protection Ordinance?
For leases entered into on or after June 2, 2022, a landlord can only do an owner or relative move-in if the lease allows an eviction for that reason or if the tenant agrees in writing. Id. For leases before June 2, 2022, the landlord may terminate for owner or relative move-in without consent from the tenant or a lease provision. Id. The owner or relative must move in within ninety days and live in the unit for twenty-four months. Id.
Within five business days of serving an eviction notice for owner or relative move-in, the landlord must submit a written affidavit to the City and the tenant stating a good-faith intent to occupy for twenty-four months, the name of the intended occupant and the relationship to the owner, and the intended occupant’s current address. Id.
What is a “Substantial Remodel” under the City of Oxnard Just Cause Eviction and Tenant Protection Ordinance?
A “substantial remodel” means replacing or significantly modifying a structural, electrical, plumbing, or mechanical system that requires a government permit, or abating hazardous materials such as lead-based paint, mold, or asbestos, where the work cannot reasonably be done safely with the tenant in place and requires the tenant to vacate for at least thirty days. Id. Cosmetic improvements such as painting, decorating, and minor repairs do not qualify. Id. The tenant cannot be required to vacate on any day they could safely remain in the unit. Id.
The landlord must obtain all required permits, and the permits must be included in the eviction notice, along with a description of the scope and direction of the work. Id. If no permits are required for the work, then the landlord must provide a construction contract.
An eviction notice for substantial remodel must state that the tenant has the right to reoccupy the unit after the work is completed, and the tenant must notify the landlord in writing that they are interested in moving back by providing the landlord with their current contact information. Id. Once the work is completed, the landlord must give the tenant a sixty-day notice to move back, and the tenant has thirty days to accept. Id.
Am I entitled to relocation payments under the City of Oxnard Just Cause Eviction and Tenant Protection Ordinance?
For all no-fault evictions, tenants are entitled to relocation assistance equal to two months’ rent or $5,000, whichever is greater. Oxnard, Cal. City Code § 27-6. The relocation payment must be provided to the tenant within fifteen days of the eviction notice. Id.
If the tenant fails to vacate after the expiration of the termination notice, the landlord may recover the actual amount of any relocation payment or rent waiver paid to the tenant as damages in an unlawful detainer action. Id.
Does the City of Oxnard Just Cause Eviction and Tenant Protection Ordinance protect tenants against landlord retaliation?
It is illegal for a landlord or the landlord’s representative to retaliate against a tenant for exercising any legal right under the ordinance. Oxnard, Cal. City Code § 27-10. A landlord may not increase the rent, reduce services, cause a tenant to involuntarily move, or discriminate against a tenant. Id. Any provision of a rental housing agreement that purports to waive any provision of the ordinance is void as against public policy. Id.
THE CITY OF OXNARD RENT CONTROL
What units are covered by the City of Oxnard Rent Stabilization Ordinance?
All residential rental units issued a certificate of occupancy on or before February 1, 1995 are covered by the rent caps of the City of Oxnard Rent Stabilization Ordinance, unless the unit falls under one of the following exemptions:
- Affordable housing with rent limits recorded by deed, agreement, or government restriction.
- School-owned dormitories, including colleges, universities, and K–12 schools.
- Separately owned single-family homes or condos, unless owned by a REIT, corporation, or certain LLCs, and only if the tenant received the required exemption notice.
- A duplex where the owner lived in one unit when the tenancy began and still lives there.
- Mobile home units covered by Oxnard’s mobile home park rent stabilization rules.
- Hotels, motels, inns, boarding houses, and similar short-term stays of less than thirty days.
- Institutional housing, including hospitals, care facilities, senior or disabled group homes, transitional housing, convents, monasteries, and fraternity or sorority houses.
- A unit where the owner or the owner’s immediate family lived as their main home when the tenancy began and still lives there. Oxnard, Cal. City Code § 27-24.
Does my tenancy fall under the State of California Tenant Protection Act of 2019 or the City of Oxnard Rent Stabilization Ordinance?
The rent caps under the California Tenant Protection Act of 2019 (“California Rent Control”) apply to all units in the City of Oxnard that are not covered by the City of Oxnard Rent Stabilization Ordinance and that otherwise meet the requirements of state rent control protection. If your Oxnard unit is one of the exempt buildings under the City’s ordinance, please read our guide to determine if your unit is covered by California Rent Control.
What is the maximum allowable rent increase per year under the City of Oxnard Rent Stabilization Ordinance?
For units covered by the City of Oxnard Rent Stabilization Ordinance, a landlord may not increase the rent by more than 4% per year. Landlords may petition the City of Oxnard for a higher rent increase through the Fair Return Petition process. To obtain a higher increase, the landlord must show that the 4% cap does not allow the landlord to obtain a fair return on the property.
THE CITY OF OXNARD TENANT ANTI-HARASSMENT PROTECTIONS
Does the City of Oxnard protect tenants from being harassed by their landlord?
Yes. Landlords, owners, owner’s agents, property managers, representatives, and master tenants are prohibited from harassing a tenant. Harassment includes any conduct undertaken with the intent to vex, annoy, injure, or intimidate a tenant, including but not limited to:
- Reducing services or amenities, such as utilities, parking, laundry, storage, trash removal, or other benefits.
- Cutting back on maintenance or delaying required repairs.
- Misusing the right to enter the unit, including unnecessary, excessive, targeted, or privacy-invading entries.
- Using abusive or threatening language toward the tenant.
- Misleading a tenant or hiding important facts to get them to move out.
- Threatening the tenant with physical harm.
- Falsely telling the tenant they must move out.
- Taking too long to complete repairs after getting possession of the unit for that purpose.
- Discriminating against tenants in violation of housing laws.
- Threatening eviction or termination without a proper legal basis.
- Interfering with the tenant’s use and enjoyment of the unit.
- Refusing to accept lawful rent payments.
- Disturbing the tenant’s possession or making the unit unfit to live in.
- Using construction or renovation to pressure the tenant to move out.
- Locking the tenant out without a court order.
- Asking about, requiring statements about, or threatening to disclose immigration or citizenship status.
- Violating the tenant’s privacy, including improper cameras or unauthorized personal information requests.
- Retaliating against tenant organizing, tenant associations, unions, or political activity.
- Retaliating against a tenant for contacting or seeking help from a government or social services agency. Oxnard, Cal. City Code § 27-42
PENALTIES FOR A LANDLORD WHO VIOLATES THE LAW
Can I sue my Landlord for A Wrongful Eviction under the City of Oxnard Just Cause Eviction and Tenant Protection Ordinance?
A tenant who has been wrongfully evicted may sue their landlord for their damages. Oxnard, Cal. City Code § 27-11. Damages include emotional distress, loss of the value of a rent-controlled unit, moving costs, return of rent, injunctive relief, and attorney fees and costs. Id. Triple damages are only awarded where a landlord willfully failed to comply with the relocation payment obligations. Id.
Can I sue my landlord for violating the City of Oxnard Rent Stabilization Ordinance?
Tenants can sue their landlord for intentionally demanding, accepting, or retaining any rent payment in violation of the law. Oxnard, Cal. City Code § 27-28. The landlord will be liable to the tenant for three times the amount of rent demanded, accepted, or collected that exceeds the maximum amount the landlord is legally entitled to. Id. Tenant’s may also be awarded reasonable attorney fees and costs as determined by the court. Id.
Can I sue my landlord for Harassment Under the City Of Oxnard Tenant Anti-Harassment Protections?
A landlord who violates the anti-harassment ordinance is liable for the tenant’s actual damages or statutory damages of $10,000, whichever is greater, plus punitive damages, injunctive relief, and reasonable attorney fees and costs. Oxnard, Cal. City Code § 27-43. If the aggrieved tenant is elderly or disabled, the landlord is liable for additional statutory damages of $5,000 for each violation. Id.
WHEN SHOULD I CALL A TENANT RIGHTS LAWYER?
The City of Oxnard Rent Stabilization Ordinance and Just Cause For Eviction Ordinance can be complicated. Tenants should call Tobener Ravenscroft LLP at (415) 504-2165 to speak with a tenant attorney if they have any questions about their local laws or if they believe their landlord has violated the ordinances.
