Evictions
Click on a link below to jump to a section:
When and Why Can a Tenant Be Evicted?
IMPORTANT: If you receive a Summons & Complaint for unlawful detainer (official court paperwork), please contact the Eviction Defense Collaborative immediately for help filing your answer.
The SF rent ordinance* requires Landlords to have just cause to evict tenants from those units, except for those where “rents are controlled by the government”, which means when rents are subsidized (Ex: Section 8, Public Housing) or intentionally kept affordable or low (Below Market Units, Inclusionary Zoning, Tax Credit). These building also have Just Cause Eviction Protections, but they fall under different rules.
*See here to learn if you are under rent control.
Most buildings that are not under rent control are still protected from eviction by State law and also require Just Cause.
Just Causes for Eviction
Under the SF Rent Ordinance, Landlords can only evict tenants for 16 specific reasons, known as “Just Causes”. Any other reason not found on the list, is considered to be an illegal eviction in rent controlled housing.
The Just Causes listed below are the only reasons landlords can evict tenants in market rate and rent controlled apartments in San Francisco:
Non-payment of rent
Violation of a lawful obligation under the lease, i.e. habitual late payment of rent
Tenants are creating a nuisance and disturbing other tenants or damaging property.
Landlord or a family member intends to move into the unit (see Owner Move-In (OMI) info).
Landlord plans to perform capital improvements which require the tenant to temporarily vacate the unit (see below).
The unit is being used for illegal purposes.
Tenant refuses to renew a rental agreement that is materially the same. (Note that tenants are not obligated to sign an agreement that is materially different from the one they currently have, no matter how old the original agreement is).
Tenant refuses the landlord access to the rental unit, as required by state or local law.
Landlord seeks to sell the unit in accordance with the condominium conversion rules under the SF Subdivision Ordinance.
Unapproved subtenant is the only remaining tenant.
Landlord plans to take the building off the market for 10 years. (see Ellis Act Eviction).
Landlord seeks to substantially rehabilitate or completely rebuild the unit.
Landlord plans to demolish or remove permanently the unit from the rental market. (This is often used for illegal units, though landlords now have the option of legalizing the units and if they decide to demolish, and are required to file for a change of use hearing at the Planning Commission before they can evict).
Landlord needs to temporarily evict the tenant in order to get rid of lead paint.
The landlord seeks to recover possession in good faith in order to demolish or to otherwise permanently remove the rental unit from housing use in accordance with the terms of a development agreement entered into by the City under Chapter 56 of the San Francisco Administrative Code.
The tenant’s Good Samaritan Status (Section 37.2(a)(1)(D)) has expired, and the landlord exercises the right to recover possession by serving a notice of termination of tenancy under this Section 37.9(a)(16) within 60 days after expiration of the Original and any Extended Good Samaritan Status Period.
If you are being evicted without a just cause and are under just cause eviction protection, you can fill out an Alleged Wrongful Eviction petition with the Rent Board, link is here.
The most important thing to understand about eviction is that it is a legal process. It can’t be done verbally, only through a written warning notice (3- 30- 60-days, etc.), then a court summons (Unlawful Detainer) must be filed. You don’t have to leave because your landlord tells you to; they must give you a written notice and follow the legal process, step by step.
The legal process of eviction begins with a three, 30 or 60-day notice (some forms of subsidized housing such as Section 8 will use 7-day, 10-day, or 14-day notices). Ellis Act evictions require 120 day notices, though seniors and disabled persons get a year.
A three-day notice to “cure or quit” can be given to a tenant who has not paid rent on time or who is violating or breaching a lease agreement. A three-day notice is a warning that if the rent is not paid or the breach cured within three days, you can be taken to court to be evicted. It does NOT mean you’ll be thrown out of your apartment in three days. With a three-day notice, weekends don’t count. If you receive it on Friday, it doesn’t start counting until Monday. The type of notice and length of time depends on the type of eviction. You can see the notice requirements here.
A written notice to vacate must be properly served. First your landlord must try to find you and hand the notice to you. If your landlord can’t find you, the notice may be handed to a “person of suitable age [over 18] and discretion” at your home or work. A copy must be mailed to you. If your landlord cannot find a suitable person to leave the notice with, they can post it in a conspicuous place on your premises and mail a copy to you.
In units covered by rent control, this notice must state the grounds for eviction (just cause, see above), and that advice is available from the Rent Board. An improper notice can be used to defeat an eviction, but only if the tenant responds to the notice.
Types of Evictions
Lawful Evictions
These types of evictions are technically legal under our rent ordinance. This does not mean there are no ways to fight it however. Certain conditions need to be in place, be provable and all of the technical rules need to be followed. It is important to make sure that when a Landlord or Owner claims they have a Just Cause, that it is actually true.
1. Owner move-in (OMI) evictions
The owner of a unit may recover possession of that unit if they intend to make it their principal place of residence for 36 continuous months (three years). If the owner already resides in the building, or has just bought it and is moving into a unit, they are allowed to exercise this right for any immediate adult family members: parents, grandparents, children, grandchildren, siblings, spouses, and relatives’ spouses. If they are just buying the building and moving in, they can literally move relatives into every apartment. The relative must move in within three months of the eviction.
The landlord must offer the tenant any vacant comparable unit within any property they own. The unit, however, can be at market rate, not at the old rent controlled rent. A written notice of 60 days is required for an OMI. The notice should include the name of the landlord and the person moving in (if not the landlord), their relationship to the landlord, what other properties the landlord and the person moving in have, the percentage of interest the owner holds in the property, and the fact that advice is available from the Rent Board.
The landlord has to file paperwork with the Rent Board to show that they are living in the property. Nonprofits have the right to sue on behalf of a tenant who has been fraudulently evicted via OMI and waived their rights under some agreement(s). Tenants can NOT be evicted for OMI if:
They’ve lived in the unit for 10 years or more and they’re 60 or older, or they’re disabled.
They are catastrophically ill and have lived in the unit for five years or more.
Note: These protections do not apply if the person moving in is a senior or disabled.
The owner needs at least a 25% recorded interest in the property to evict for OMI. Verbal or oral threats or warnings of an OMI are not an eviction notice. These threats do not have to be filed with the Rent Board, but the subsequent written notice must be filed with the Rent Board within 10 days of serving it to the tenant. Also proof of service must be filed with the Rent Board.
OMI of a family with kids:
A family with children under 18 who has lived in the unit for more than a year cannot be evicted during the school year. The landlord must wait until the school year (i.e., in the summer) is through to do the eviction. That means the eviction notice (of 30 or 60 days) must be given in enough time for the eviction to be completed before the school year begins again. This does not apply if the landlord moving in also has a minor child (under 18).
According to the SF Rent Board, this also applies to anyone “who works at a school as an employee per independent contractor of the school or of the governing body that has jurisdiction over the school, including, without limitation, all teachers, classroom aides, administrators, administrative staff, counselors, social workers, psychologists, school nurses, speech pathologists, custodians, security guards, cafeteria workers, community relations specialists, child welfare and attendance liaisons, and learning support consultants.”
Relocation Money:
The landlord must pay a certain amount to each tenant who has lived in the unit 12 months or more (half at the time of notice, the remainder upon move-out). See chart for required payment amounts. Disabled seniors (over 60) and households with children receive an additional amount.
There’s a cap for the apartment, but that does not include the additional money for seniors, the disabled or minor children. Relocation benefits apply to all housing, even single-family dwellings and condos. The amount increases every year, based on the cost of living index. The following OMI relocation chart also applies to demolition or permanent removal of units from housing, substantial rehabilitation, and capital improvement evictions. The latter two—substantial rehabilitation and capital improvement—are temporary.
If you receive an OMI eviction notice:
Check with the Assessor’s Office to verify that the landlord or the person moving in (if applicable) holds the required interest in the property to find out where the owner/person who plans to move into your unit lives. (Checking on the web may not be enough since records of property transfers do not make it into the online database for a while after they occur). If the owner has another primary residence, especially one that they own, you can argue that they don’t intend to move in.
Check to see if there are any comparable apartments in the building that are vacant or will become vacant before your notice period expires. If a comparable apartment is available, the landlord or family member must offer it to you. But they can charge you market rate and not the rent-controlled rate you’re paying at the current unit.
If everything is in order, try to negotiate with your landlord to pay your moving expenses or to give you more time to move. If you can, get legal advice from a lawyer from our Attorney Referral List.
Follow up with neighbors to verify that the landlord actually moves into the apartment. If they do not move in, consult an attorney.
2. Ellis act evictions
A landlord may evict all tenants in a building in order to “go out of the business of being a landlord.” One-year notices are required for tenants who are 62 years and older or disabled; 120-day notices for all other tenants. Landlords must also file a “Notice of Intent to Withdraw” with the Rent Board within ten days of serving notice to tenants. Landlords must pay each tenant a certain amount (see link to chart below) with a household cap for relocation costs.
NOTE: The amount changes every year, adjusted for cost of living. Disabled and senior tenants also receive an additional amount above the cap, as do households with children. Use this chart for relocation amounts due if you receive an Ellis eviction. The landlord must give half the amount upfront with the written notice and the other half when the tenant moves.
If the landlord re-rents the unit within five years, the tenant has the right to move back at the same rent. Tenants should write to the landlord within 30 days of moving out, stating their desire to move back if the unit is re-rented. Include an address where you can be reached. Under state law, landlords of SROs can’t evict them using the Ellis act if they received a permit of occupancy prior to 1/1/90 and have not sent a notice of intent to withdraw the place from rental prior to 1/1/04.
3. Nonpayment of rent evictions
The most legitimate and easy way to evict a tenant is for non-payment of rent. If the Landlord can prove that you did not pay the agreed upon amount for rent by the due date, then it is a pretty “open and shut” case. There can still be ways to challenge such an eviction however, such as if the amount charged is not accurate, you DID actually pay rent and can prove it, or they did not follow the proper notice procedures. A nonpayment of rent eviction requires a 72 hour notice or A three-day notice to “cure or quit” can be given to a tenant who has not paid rent on time. A three-day notice is a warning that if the rent is not paid, you can be taken to court to be evicted. It does NOT mean you’ll be thrown out of your apartment in three days. With a three-day notice, weekends don’t count. If you receive it on Friday, it doesn’t start counting until Monday.
If you are being evicted because you owe rent you must receive a 3 day notice. The notice must state the correct amount of rent owed, the name and address of the person to whom the rent should be paid, and the address where you can pay it. Your landlord must accept the rent if you pay it within the three days. After the three-day period, the landlord does NOT have to accept the money. If you need rental assistance to cure the three-day notice, check out the list here.
4. Breach of lease or “nuisance” evictions
If you violate a serious or “material” term of the lease agreement or you repeatedly have violated the lease in any way, this can be grounds for eviction. The more serious matters, such a criminal activity, health and safety or violence related are often given as “nuisance|evictions. This usually means there is some behavior the tenant has engaged in that negatively impacts the property or other tenants or neighbors. Nuisance evictions have a quicker timeline because of this.
A three-day notice to “cure or quit” can be given to a tenant who is violating or breaching a lease agreement. A three-day notice is a warning that if the breach is not cured within three days, you can be taken to court to be evicted. It does NOT mean you’ll be thrown out of your apartment in three days. With a three-day notice, weekends don’t count. If you receive it on Friday, it doesn’t start counting until Monday.
5. Temporary capital improvement evictions
In order to perform capital improvements on the building, landlords can ask tenants to temporarily vacate their units. However, Landlords must obtain all necessary permits from the Department of Building Inspections before giving the tenant a 60-day notice to vacate. The work should not take longer than 90 days, although the landlord can petition the Rent Board to renew the notice for another 90 days, if needed. Landlords must pay the tenant relocation money, just as with OMI and Ellis Act evictions (see the chart under OMI relocation benefits above for actual amount).
The tenant must be notified when the unit is ready for re-occupancy IF the tenant lets the landlord know before moving that they are interested in re-occupancy. It’s important to put that in writing. If the relocation is for less than 20 days, then the relocation money is $408/day plus actual moving expenses. If the landlord then extends the time beyond the 20 days, then the tenant may be entitled to the other relocation amount under OMI relocation above. It doesn’t hurt to ask for the extra money.
Unlawful Evictions
These types of evictions are illegal or unauthorized under the Rent Ordinance and State Law:
1. Retaliatory Evictions
California Civil Code 1942.5 says a landlord cannot retaliate against tenants for asserting their rights by evicting them or raising the rent. If your landlord tries to evict you within six months of an action you have taken to assert your rights (such as filing a petition at the Rent Board or calling a building inspector), you may have a defense against it. Make sure you keep copies of all actions which might be cause for retaliation, such as Rent Board notices, Building Inspection notices, etc.
2. Lockouts
YOUR LANDLORD CAN’T LOCK YOU OUT!
An eviction is a legal process involving court action. Landlords cannot evict tenants—or try to force them out by turning off the utilities or changing the locks—without going to court. If your landlord attempts any of these tactics to force you out:
Call the police at (415) 553-0123. Under Penal Code 418, your landlord is guilty of a misdemeanor. You have the right to regain entry into your apartment.
If your utilities have been turned off, call the utility company and try to have them turned back on.
Keep a log of these incidents. Write a letter to your landlord stating that you are aware of your rights and that you want the situation remedied without further harassment. Keep a copy, as it may be used as evidence in your defense should you ever go to court.
According to California Civil Code 789.3, you can sue your landlord. Contact an attorney. The Statute of Limitations is one year as per CA Code of Civil Procedure 340(a).
3. Constructive Evictions, Pretext Evictions and “Renovictions”
Sometimes landlords want a tenant out but they don't want to spend the money to hire an eviction attorney, or maybe they are impatient and don't want to wait as long as the process takes or they just don't want the hassle of going through the courts. Instead, they will think of sneaky ways to get tenants out that are quicker and cheaper, without being told they can’t by a judge. Ways that landlords try to do this include doing such extreme repair and remodel work that the tenant’s home is so disrupted and miserable that they feel forced to leave on their own (“Renoviction”).
Other times they simply use harassment or deferred maintenance or other ways of making the home so unlivable that tenants feel they must leave. “Pretext” evictions are used when the Landlord doesn't have a real reason or Just Cause to evict, so they make it seem as if it is due to another issue (example: blaming a tenant for damage to the unit that they did not do, so they can evict them for nuisance). All of these types of evictions are illegal, since they do not involve a court process.
4. Verbal Evictions
There is no such thing as a verbal eviction. If your Landlord does not notify you in writing, following the timeline and process required by the courts, then they are not evicting you. It will not hold up and you don’t have to move. No matter what they may say, there is no eviction if it is not in writing.
Court Process / Timeline for Eviction
If, at the end of the three, 30 or 60-day notice period the tenant does not voluntarily move out, a landlord must file an Unlawful Detainer in court to remove the tenant from the rental unit. When the Unlawful Detainer is served, you have 10 days (weekends count, holidays don’t!) to file a response. To file your response, you should get legal assistance from the Eviction Defense Collaborative: If a response is not filed on time, your landlord may obtain a default judgment, which quickens the process.
After you respond, the court will set up a settlement conference, at which time you and your landlord can present your arguments and possibly come to an agreement. You do NOT have to agree to a settlement at this conference–if you do not, the case will go to trial. (Only after your landlord wins at trial can you be removed from your unit by the Sheriff, but not by the landlord or the police).
If your landlord wins the court decision or if you neglect to answer the summons and the landlord gets a default judgment, the Sheriff’s office will post a five-day “Notice to Vacate” on your door. After five days (and usually on a Wednesday, that’s the day the sheriff does evictions), the locks on the doors can be changed by the Sheriff and only the Sheriff. If your belongings are not out of the apartment when the locks are changed, they will be put into storage and you will be liable for the cost. You will have 14 days to get them. If you don’t, the landlord can sell or destroy them. Once you receive the Sheriff’s notice, you can file a motion in court asking for another week. It’s called a “stay.” You can often do this twice. You will have to be able to pay the week’s rent in cash or money order in order to receive the stay. The court hears petitions for stays on Tuesday, the day before the Sheriff comes. Eviction Defense Collaborative can help you prepare the papers for court.
See the timeline and process for evictions here.
3-Day Notices
What to do if you get a 3-Day Notice from your Landlord:
A 3-day eviction notice does not mean you have to leave your home. Sometimes there are easy ways of remedying it. Even when there is not, a 3-Day Notice is not a formal court document and only signals the beginning of the eviction process, which takes many months, during which you have the right to dispute the reasons for or legality of the eviction. Never move based on this type of notice.
The best thing to do at this stage is stop the Landlord from being able to file in court and start the formal eviction process by responding to the 3-Day notice. There are different ways you should respond, depending on the type of notice.
3-Day Notice to Pay or Quit
This is a nonpayment of rent notice.
If you agree that you owe rent, pay it as soon as possible and this will eliminate the ability of your Landlord to sue you in court.
If you disagree with the amount you are being charged or the Landlord claims you owe:
We suggest you pay the amount the Landlord claims you owe, so that you avoid any risk of them filing in court, and then seek legal advice or counseling on the legality of the eviction and how to dispute the amount being charged.
If you do not have the money to pay what is owed, ask you Landlord if they will accept a payment plan or seek rent assistance so that you can avoid eviction.
3-Day Notice to Cure or Quit
This type of notice is for lease violations and asks you to fix a problem within 3 days.
It is important to respond. The best way to respond to this is simply stop the behavior or fix the problem, if at all possible. If it is not easy to prove or see that you fixed the issue, respond with a letter explaining that the lease violation or problematic behavior will not continue or describing what action you have taken to address the problem.
If you do not agree that you have been doing what they allege or you do not believe it is a breach of lease or other legal violation, you may also send a letter asserting that, but it is more risky to do so, and you may need legal help to prove your Landlord wrong.
If you do not prove that you have “cured”, the Landlord can then send you a 3-Day Notice to Move.
3-Day Notice to Move
(Given after the 3-day Notice to Cure or Quit)
For serious lease violations, such as illegal activity, health and safety threats, and “nuisances” (repeated police visits, dangerous dog on property, threatening behavior, continuous loud parties, etc).
There is no way to respond to this type of notice other than with an attorney, who may be able to disprove the “charges” or show the Landlord did not follow the correct procedures.
This is basically a notice that in 3 days, the Landlord can file an eviction lawsuit against you in court.
This does not mean that you have to move however. There is still the court process, which can take months and if you have a case, an attorney may be able to defend the eviction and keep you in your home.
Other Eviction Issues
Relocation Payments
Under CA Civil Code 1940.2, it’s unlawful for a landlord to threaten a tenant in order to force them to move or to interfere with their quiet enjoyment.
A landlord can NOT demand rent, collect rent, issue a notice of rent increase, issue a notice to pay rent or quit, any of these things–IF THERE IS AN OUTSTANDING NOV (“notice of violation,” such as one from the Department of Building Inspections or the Health Department) for at least 35 days. We don’t recommend the withholding of rent, but if you should decide to do it, consult an attorney. We can provide you with a list of tenants rights attorneys in SF.
A tenant must be represented by legal counsel in a court-supervised settlement agreement in order to waive any rights under the rent ordinance, 37.10A(g). This applies to all settlement agreements, even in Ellis and OMI evictions.
The grounds cited in an eviction notice must be adhered to, regardless of any agreement. So if a landlord OMIs a place, they must still move into that place despite any agreement.
New Owners Can Not Evict
Change in ownership is NOT a Just Cause to evict. There are potential eviction actions that a new landlord might take, including Owner Move in Evictions, but that would have to be done according to procedure and only given certain conditions. There is no way a new owner can automatically evict a tenant, just because they purchased the building.
Buyouts
A landlord has to register a buyout offer with the Rent Board via a “pre-buyout negotiations disclosure form” and send in a declaration that he has served the buyout negotiation form before he can even begin negotiating any amount or terms. None of this can be done verbally.
A tenant does not have to agree to enter into a buyout negotiation, but if they do, they can consult a lawyer and back out of the agreement within 45 days of signing it. The final agreement must be filed with the Rent Board within 46-59 days. Any violation of this law can be enforced via civil action in state court. A landlord’s ability to condo convert may be affected by buyouts if a senior, disabled, or catastrophically ill person is given a buyout, or if two or more tenants got buyouts up to ten years before the condo conversion is approved.
Tools to Fight an Eviction
Legal Defense in Court
To respond to an Unlawful Detainer (eviction filed in court) you need to obtain legal assistance immediately. The Eviction Defense Collaborative (EDC) assists tenants in responding to the court papers. You can also call their legal assistance line at (415) 659-9184 or email them at legal@evictiondefense.org. The new Right to Counsel program in SF should then be able to connect you to an attorney to help defend you in your eviction case.
If you have an eviction notice or warning but you have not yet received court papers, you may also find assistance through EDC, Right to Counsel or another legal organization on our resource list.
The Rent Board
You can also use the Rent Board to file a petition for a Wrongful Eviction, but it will not halt the process.
Organizing / Political Pressure
In some eviction cases, where the action is especially egregious and/or illegal, the tenant is particularly vulnerable and/or the owner is well known or associated with a powerful or important institution, public pressure and shaming of the landlord can be effective at halting the eviction or providing time and leverage to negotiate. It can be helpful to involve your local Supervisor or the Mayor’s office, to get media coverage and to raise awareness of the situation. Organizing rallies and actions targeting the evictor is also sometimes effective.