Key takeaways
- Three questions decide your rent: which city or area the building is in, when its certificate of occupancy was issued, and how many units are on the lot. Our checker below answers all three for every city in Los Angeles, Ventura and Santa Barbara counties.
- Most local caps allow 1.5% to 3.7% this year, against up to 8.7% under the statewide cap in the Los Angeles area. Oxnard and Ojai allow up to 4%, Pomona up to 5% and Inglewood's buildings of four or fewer units 8.7%.
- Santa Barbara is next: rents on covered units are frozen through 12/31/2026, and the ordinance adopted 10/06/2026 would allow 2.1% in 2027. It is scheduled to take effect 11/05/2026 unless a qualifying referendum petition suspends it.
- Los Angeles changed its formula on 02/02/2026 to 90% of CPI with a 1% floor and a 4% ceiling, with the allowable increase held at 3% through 06/30/2027.
- In our own City of Los Angeles files, rent-controlled units sat about 9 points further below our market-rent estimate than exempt units of similar age. In the buildings whose rent rolls show move-in dates, the gap is near zero in the first year of a tenancy and widens the longer the tenant stays.
We sell apartment buildings from Santa Barbara to Long Beach, and the first question an owner asks us about rent control is a practical one: what can I raise, does it apply to my building, and what is about to change. This guide answers those three for every city with a local cap in Los Angeles, Ventura and Santa Barbara counties, as of 10/24/2026, with each figure read from the city's or county's own page. It then shows what our own deal files say about rent-controlled buildings. It is market information, not legal advice; confirm the rule with the city before you serve a notice.
How much can I raise the rent on a rent-controlled apartment?
It depends on the city. As of 10/24/2026, most local caps in Los Angeles, Ventura and Santa Barbara counties allow between 1.5% and 3.7% a year; Pomona allows up to 5%, Oxnard and Ojai up to 4%, and the City of Los Angeles 3% through 06/30/2027. Where no local cap applies, AB 1482 limits increases on most buildings over 15 years old to 5% plus regional CPI, up to 10%: 8.7% in the Los Angeles area and 8.6% in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties for increases from 08/01/2026 to 07/31/2027.
Every figure is in the city table below, with its period. A local cap usually allows one increase in any 12 months. California law requires 30 days' written notice for an increase of 10% or less and 90 days for more (Civil Code section 827).
Is my building covered by rent control?
Three tests decide it: the city or area, the date on the certificate of occupancy, and the number of units. A local cap generally reaches buildings of two or more units built before the city's cutoff (10/01/1978 in the City of Los Angeles, 02/01/1995 in most newer ordinances); newer buildings, houses and condos usually fall to AB 1482 or to no cap at all.
The checker below runs the three tests for any city in the three counties. It is a first check: every ordinance lists more exemptions than fit in a form.
What is changing in rent control in 2026 and 2027?
Santa Barbara's new ordinance is scheduled to take effect 11/05/2026, 30 days after adoption, unless a qualifying referendum petition suspends it; covered rents stay frozen through 12/31/2026, and the first allowable increase, 2.1%, would apply in 2027. Los Angeles moved to a lower formula on 02/02/2026. Santa Monica votes on a registration fee ceiling (Measure GG) on 11/03/2026, and Pomona's 5% cap runs through 12/31/2026 unless the council reauthorizes it.
Every local rent cap in Los Angeles, Ventura and Santa Barbara counties
One row per city or area with a local cap on apartment rents. Where no row appears, the statewide cap (AB 1482) is the limit for most buildings over 15 years old. Select a city for its section.
| City or area | Allowable increase | Formula | Covers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles County | |||
| City of Los Angeles | 3%07/2025 to 06/2027 | 90% of CPI, 1% floor, 4% ceiling (from 02/02/2026) | 2+ units first built on or before 10/01/1978 |
| Unincorporated LA County | 1.919%07/2026 to 06/2027 | 60% of CPI, 3% max (small landlords +1%, luxury units +2%) | 2+ units, certificate of occupancy on or before 02/01/1995 |
| Santa Monica | 2.6%09/2026 to 08/2027 | 75% of CPI, capped at 3% or $70 | Units with a certificate of occupancy before 04/10/1979 |
| West Hollywood | 2.75%09/2026 to 08/2027 | 75% of CPI, rounded to 0.25%; 3% when CPI rises 4% or more | 2+ units first occupied on or before 07/01/1979 |
| Beverly Hills | 3.6%07/2026 to 06/2027 | Chapter 6: 3%, or CPI if higher; Chapter 5: CPI, monthly | Most rental buildings of 2+ units |
| Culver City | 3.25%06/2026 to 06/2027 | CPI, 2% floor, 5% ceiling | 2+ units built on or before 02/01/1995 |
| Pasadena | 2.50%10/2026 to 09/2027 | 75% of CPI | Multi-unit buildings built before 02/01/1995 |
| Inglewood | 3.7%5+ units; 8.7% for 1 to 4 | 5+ units: 3% or CPI, if higher; 1 to 4: 5% plus CPI; 10% max | Rentals except a rolling 15-year new-construction exemption and others |
| Pomona | 5%01/2026 to 12/2026 | Up to 5% a year, not tied to CPI | Buildings with a certificate of occupancy on or before 02/01/1995 |
| Baldwin Park | 3.7%08/2026 to 07/2027 | CPI, 1% floor, 5% ceiling | Rentals built before 01/01/1995 |
| Bell Gardens | 1.5%11/2025 to 10/2026 | 50% of CPI or 4%, whichever is less | Certificate of occupancy before 02/01/1995 |
| Cudahy | 3%07/2026 to 06/2027 | CPI or 3%, whichever is less | Certificate of occupancy on or before 02/01/1995 |
| Huntington Park | Up to 3%set monthly | CPI or 3%, whichever is less | Certificate of occupancy on or before 02/01/1995 |
| Maywood | 3.7%07/2026 to 06/2027 | CPI or 4%, whichever is less | Built on or before 02/01/1995 |
| Ventura County | |||
| Oxnard | 4%since 06/2022 | Up to 4% a year, not tied to CPI | Certificate of occupancy on or before 02/01/1995 |
| Ojai | 4%since 04/2023 | Up to 4% a year, not tied to CPI | Certificate of occupancy on or before 02/01/1995 |
| Santa Barbara County | |||
| Santa Barbara | 2.1%from 01/2027 (frozen until then) | 60% of CPI or 3%, whichever is less | Certificate of occupancy before 02/01/1995 |
Besides the cities in the table, the California Attorney General's list of local rent caps shows Commerce, which applies the statewide formula, and Thousand Oaks, whose program covers only apartment tenants in place since 1987. Glendale, Burbank, Long Beach, Ventura, Simi Valley, Camarillo, Goleta, Carpinteria and Santa Maria have no local cap, though several have their own eviction or relocation rules on top of state law. As of 10/24/2026 the Attorney General's list does not yet show Santa Barbara.
Most local caps allow 1.5% to 3.7% this year; the statewide cap allows up to 8.7%
Allowable annual increase under each city's current or next adopted figure; the dashed line is the statewide cap
View the data
| City or area | Allowable increase | Period |
|---|---|---|
| Pomona | 5% | 01/2026 to 12/2026 |
| Oxnard | 4% | since 06/2022 |
| Ojai | 4% | since 04/2023 |
| Inglewood | 3.7% | 5+ units; 8.7% for 1 to 4 |
| Baldwin Park | 3.7% | 08/2026 to 07/2027 |
| Maywood | 3.7% | 07/2026 to 06/2027 |
| Beverly Hills | 3.6% | 07/2026 to 06/2027 |
| Culver City | 3.25% | 06/2026 to 06/2027 |
| City of Los Angeles | 3% | 07/2025 to 06/2027 |
| Cudahy | 3% | 07/2026 to 06/2027 |
| West Hollywood | 2.75% | 09/2026 to 08/2027 |
| Santa Monica | 2.6% | 09/2026 to 08/2027 |
| Pasadena | 2.50% | 10/2026 to 09/2027 |
| Santa Barbara | 2.1% | from 01/2027 (frozen until then) |
| Unincorporated LA County | 1.919% | 07/2026 to 06/2027 |
| Bell Gardens | 1.5% | 11/2025 to 10/2026 |
| AB 1482, Los Angeles area | 8.7% | 08/01/2026 to 07/31/2027 |
How rent control spread: three waves
The first wave came between 1979 and 1985: the City of Los Angeles adopted the RSO in 1979, Santa Monica's voters adopted rent control the same year, and West Hollywood followed in 1985. Beverly Hills and Thousand Oaks also have programs from that era; Thousand Oaks' now covers only apartment tenants who have lived in the same unit since 1987.
Then the map stopped moving here for three decades. The Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act of 1995 set the limits every local cap still works within: no local cap on buildings with a certificate of occupancy issued after 02/01/1995, none on separately sold houses and condos, and an owner may set the rent for a new tenancy after a tenant moves out. We found no new local apartment cap in the three counties between 1986 and 2017.
Three waves: 1979 to 1985, nothing new for decades, then 2018 to 2026
Year each local apartment rent cap was first adopted in the three counties, with the main reversals
Local cap adopted in LA, Ventura or Santa Barbara county Rejected, loosened or none found
View the data
| Year | Cities |
|---|---|
| 1979 to 1985 | City of Los Angeles (1979), Santa Monica (1979), West Hollywood (1985) |
| 1986 to 2017 | No new local cap found |
| 2018 | LA County unincorporated (interim) |
| 2019 | Culver City (interim), Inglewood |
| 2020 | Baldwin Park, Burbank (ballot measure failed) |
| 2022 | Oxnard, Pomona (urgency), Bell Gardens, Pasadena |
| 2023 | Ojai, Cudahy, Maywood |
| 2024 | Huntington Park |
| 2025 | Pomona (permanent, loosened to 5%) |
| 2026 | Santa Barbara |
The third wave started in late 2018 with the County's interim cap on its unincorporated areas, then Culver City and Inglewood in 2019, and a run of smaller cities from 2022 to 2024. It reached Ventura County with Oxnard in 2022 and Ojai in 2023, and Santa Barbara County with Santa Barbara's freeze and ordinance in 2026. The older programs moved in the same direction: Santa Monica cut its ceiling to 3% or $70 by ballot in 11/2022, West Hollywood capped its formula at 3% in 2022, the County tightened its formula in 11/2024, and the City of Los Angeles cut its own in 12/2025.
Not every city went along. Burbank's voters rejected a rent control measure in 11/2020. On 05/27/2025 Ventura's council directed staff on tenant protections such as legal aid and outreach but did not move forward on rent stabilization or a registry. Most of the newest caps are tight, 60% of CPI with a 3% ceiling in the County and in Santa Barbara, but not all: Oxnard and Ojai chose a fixed 4% ceiling and Pomona 5%, none of them tied to CPI.
Since 2018, caps spread through California, and a few cities turned back
New or tightened local apartment caps by year, and where a city said no or reversed
LA, Ventura or Santa Barbara county Elsewhere in California Rejected, repealed, loosened or a repeal vote
View the data
| Year | Adopted or tightened | Rejected or repealed |
|---|---|---|
| 2018 | LA County unincorporated | none |
| 2019 | Sacramento, Culver City, Inglewood | none |
| 2020 | Baldwin Park | Burbank |
| 2021 | Santa Ana | none |
| 2022 | Oxnard, Oakland (tightened), Pomona (urgency), Antioch, Bell Gardens, Fairfax, West Hollywood (tightened), Pasadena, Santa Monica (tightened) | none |
| 2023 | Ojai, Cudahy, Maywood | none |
| 2024 | Concord, Half Moon Bay, Salinas, Huntington Park, LA County (tightened) | Fairfax (repealed by voters) |
| 2025 | Los Angeles (tightened) | Pomona (loosened to 5%), Concord (loosened), Salinas (repeal suspended; voters decide 11/03/2026) |
| 2026 | Santa Barbara, San Leandro | Half Moon Bay (repeal) |
Statewide, the path is closed for now. Voters rejected the three ballot measures that would have widened local rent control, each by about 60% to 40%: Proposition 10 in 2018, 21 in 2020 and 33 in 2024. AB 1157, a 2025 bill to tighten the statewide cap, failed in the Assembly Judiciary Committee on 01/13/2026 and died 01/31/2026, and no rent control measure is on the 11/03/2026 statewide ballot. AB 1482's cap, 5% plus regional CPI up to 10%, runs until 01/01/2030. That leaves the fight to city councils and city ballots, where the recent votes were close: Santa Barbara 4 to 3, Ojai 3 to 2, Oxnard 5 to 2.
City by city
Each section opens with the short answer: the allowable increase, the buildings it covers and what is pending.
City of Los Angeles: 3% through 06/30/2027, under a new formula
Rent-stabilized units in the City of Los Angeles may go up 3% a year through 06/30/2027. The RSO covers buildings of two or more units first built on or before 10/01/1978, and since 02/02/2026 the yearly figure is 90% of CPI with a 1% floor and a 4% ceiling, with no extra 1% for owner-paid gas or electricity.
The new formula came in two votes, both from the City Clerk's record of Council File 23-1134. On 11/12/2025 the council voted 12 to 2 (Blumenfield and Lee voting no) to have the City Attorney draft an ordinance at 90% of CPI with a 1% floor and a 4% ceiling, raised from a committee proposal of 60% of CPI. On 12/12/2025 it adopted Ordinance 188795, also 12 to 2 (Lee and Rodriguez voting no); the Mayor approved it in 12/2025 and it took effect 02/02/2026. The old formula was 100% of CPI with a 3% floor and an 8% ceiling, plus 1% each for gas and electricity the owner paid.
LAHD has kept the allowable increase at 3% from 07/01/2025 through 06/30/2027. The first figure computed under the new formula would apply from 07/01/2027; LAHD had not published it as of 10/24/2026.
Unincorporated Los Angeles County: 1.919%
In the unincorporated parts of Los Angeles County, covered units may go up 1.919% from 07/01/2026 to 06/30/2027, or 2.919% for a small property landlord, with 2% more allowed for a luxury unit. The County's ordinance covers buildings of two or more units with a certificate of occupancy on or before 02/01/1995.
The County's formula has been 60% of the change in CPI with a 3% maximum since 2025; small property landlords may add 1% (4% maximum) and luxury units 2% (5% maximum). The permanent ordinance took effect 04/01/2020. The County's Department of Consumer and Business Affairs runs the program.
Santa Monica: 2.6%, or $70 a month at most
Covered Santa Monica units may go up 2.6% from 09/01/2026 to 08/31/2027, or $70 a month if the maximum allowable rent is $2,674 or more. The charter's rent control covers units with certificates of occupancy issued before 04/10/1979.
Santa Monica voters adopted rent control in April 1979. Measure RC, passed in 11/2022, cut the general adjustment ceiling from 6% or $140 to 3% or $70. On 11/03/2026 voters decide Measure GG, which would set a $288 starting ceiling on the yearly registration fee, indexed to CPI from 2028, among other charter changes.
West Hollywood: 2.75%
West Hollywood's covered units may go up 2.75% from 09/01/2026 to 08/31/2027. The city's ordinance covers properties of two or more units first occupied or given a certificate of occupancy on or before 07/01/1979.
The figure is 75% of the May to May change in CPI, rounded to the nearest quarter point, and capped at 3% when CPI rises 4% or more. The city has had rent stabilization since 1985.
Beverly Hills: 3.6% (Chapter 6)
Most rental properties of two or more units in Beverly Hills fall under Chapter 6, where the allowable increase is 3.6% from 07/01/2026 to 06/30/2027. A smaller group of older, lower-rent units falls under Chapter 5, where the figure is updated monthly and was 3.39% on 10/14/2026.
Culver City: 3.25%
Covered Culver City units may go up 3.25% for increases from 06/01/2026 through 06/30/2027. The ordinance covers parcels with two or more rental units built on or before 02/01/1995.
The formula is the average annual change in CPI with a 2% floor and a 5% ceiling. The permanent ordinance took effect 10/30/2020; clarifying amendments took effect 02/11/2026.
Pasadena: 2.50% under Measure H
Pasadena's annual general adjustment is 2.50% from 10/01/2026 through 09/30/2027. Rent stabilization under Measure H, which voters approved in 2022, covers multi-unit properties built before 02/01/1995.
Inglewood: 3.7% for 5+ units, 8.7% for 1 to 4
Inglewood allows 3.7% for buildings of five or more units and 8.7% for four or fewer, for 07/01/2026 to 06/30/2027. The city's cap reaches most rentals, with exemptions that include units with a certificate of occupancy in the last 15 years and owner-occupied duplexes.
Units renting below 80% of fair market rent may take more with the city's approval, up to 10%. Inglewood's permanent ordinance took effect 12/05/2019.
Pomona: 5% through 12/31/2026
Pomona allows up to 5% a year from 01/01/2026 through 12/31/2026, not tied to CPI. It covers rental buildings with a certificate of occupancy on or before 02/01/1995; owner-occupied duplexes, houses and condos are among the exemptions.
Ordinance 4359 replaced the city's 2022 urgency cap and took effect 01/01/2026. As posted by the city and the Attorney General, it runs through 12/31/2026 unless the council reauthorizes it; check the city's page before relying on it for 2027.
Baldwin Park, Bell Gardens, Cudahy, Huntington Park and Maywood
Five smaller cities in the county adopted caps from 2020 to 2024, most of them tied to CPI with a ceiling of 3% to 5%: Baldwin Park 3.7% (from 08/01/2026), Bell Gardens 1.5% (through 10/31/2026), Cudahy 3%, Huntington Park up to 3% (set monthly) and Maywood 3.7% (from 07/01/2026). Each covers older buildings, generally those with a certificate of occupancy before 1995.
Their formulas: Baldwin Park, CPI with a 1% floor and a 5% ceiling; Bell Gardens, 50% of CPI or 4%, whichever is less; Cudahy, CPI or 3%, whichever is less; Huntington Park, CPI or 3%, whichever is less, recalculated monthly; Maywood, CPI or 4%, whichever is less. Bell Gardens' current figure ends 10/31/2026, and the city had not posted the next one as of 10/24/2026.
Oxnard: up to 4% a year since 06/02/2022
Oxnard caps increases on covered units at 4% a year, one increase in any 12 months, since 06/02/2022. The ordinance covers rental units except those with a certificate of occupancy issued after 02/01/1995, separately sold houses and condos, owner-occupied duplexes and a few other kinds of housing.
The council adopted Ordinance 3013 on 05/03/2022 by a 5 to 2 vote, and it took effect 30 days later. An owner can ask for more through a fair return petition. The ordinance is set to expire 12/31/2030. Oxnard requires every residential rental to register each year; the fee for 2026 to 2027 had been proposed but not adopted as of 10/24/2026.
Ojai: up to 4% a year since 2023
Ojai caps increases at 4% a year, one increase in any 12 months. It covers rental units except those with a certificate of occupancy after 02/01/1995 and the houses, condos and subsidized units state law and the ordinance exempt.
The council adopted Ordinance 937 on 03/28/2023 by a 3 to 2 vote, and it took effect in April 2023.
Ventura, Thousand Oaks and the rest of Ventura County
Outside Oxnard and Ojai, Ventura County has no local apartment cap, so AB 1482 is the limit for most buildings over 15 years old: up to 8.6% for increases from 08/01/2026 to 07/31/2027. Thousand Oaks' older program now covers only apartment tenants who have lived in the same unit since 1987.
The City of Ventura's council discussed tenant measures on 05/27/2025 and took no action on rent stabilization or a rental registry, directing staff to prepare an outreach and education plan. Several cities in the county regulate mobile home space rents, which are a separate program.
Santa Barbara: a freeze now, 2.1% in 2027 if the ordinance stands
Covered Santa Barbara rents are frozen at their 12/16/2025 level through 12/31/2026. The council adopted a permanent ordinance on 10/06/2026, 4 to 3, that would allow 2.1% in 2027 under a formula of 60% of CPI or 3%, whichever is less; it is scheduled to take effect 30 days after adoption, 11/05/2026, unless a qualifying referendum petition suspends it.
The ordinance covers rental units with a certificate of occupancy before 02/01/1995, except separately sold houses and condos, hotels, deed-restricted affordable units and qualifying Section 8 tenancies. Covered units must be registered by the later of 04/01/2027 or 30 days after the city posts the form. The full status, the referendum rules and what to do now are in our Santa Barbara rent control guide.
Goleta, Carpinteria and the rest of Santa Barbara County
No other city in Santa Barbara County caps apartment rents. Goleta and Carpinteria have tenant protections such as just cause and relocation pay, and AB 1482 limits increases on most buildings over 15 years old to 8.6% for increases from 08/01/2026 to 07/31/2027.
What our own data shows
Our deal files hold rent rolls and underwriting for hundreds of City of Los Angeles buildings. We used them to compare rent-controlled and exempt buildings on rent and on value, with the hypotheses written down before we read the results and every result checked by a reviewer who had not run it. Two results about rent held up; the value test was inconclusive. Each one below says what it rests on.
Rent-controlled units sit further below market
In 433 rent-controlled and 117 exempt City of Los Angeles buildings LAAA underwrote from 2016 to 2026, rent-controlled units sat about 9 points further below our market-rent estimate than exempt units, once building age is matched: 26% below market against 17%. Across all exempt buildings, including new ones, the gap was 11 points.
Loss to lease is how far in-place rent sits below what the unit would rent for today, as a share of that market rent. The market rents are our own estimates, written when we underwrote each building, so this is one source and one test. As a check, our market rents for rent-controlled buildings came out about 10% below the Zillow rent index for the city, and for exempt buildings about 1% above it, so the gap does not come from optimistic estimates on the controlled side. The result is for the City of Los Angeles only; we do not have enough exempt buildings in other cities to test them.
In the first year of a tenancy the gap is near zero; after 10 years it is about 20 points
How far in-place rent sits below our market-rent estimate, by how long the tenant has been in the unit
View the data
| Tenancy | Rent controlled | Exempt | Units (controlled / exempt) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 1 year | 10.0% | 10.1% | 214 / 314 |
| 1 to 3 years | 15.8% | 11.1% | 191 / 390 |
| 3 to 5 years | 26.5% | 13.6% | 131 / 92 |
| 5 to 10 years | 32.0% | 15.1% | 217 / 114 |
| 10 to 20 years | 38.2% | 18.3% | 187 / 62 |
The gap opens with tenure, as a limit on yearly increases would predict, though long-tenure units may also be less renovated and our files do not record condition. For tenants in their first year, controlled and exempt units sit at about the same discount, 10%. In the buildings whose rent rolls show move-in dates (62 rent-controlled and 35 exempt City of Los Angeles buildings), loss to lease grew about 0.6 points a year faster in rent-controlled units than in exempt units (0.3 to 0.9): about 1.3 points a year of tenancy in controlled units against about 0.65 in exempt ones. Only 62 of our rent-controlled buildings and 35 of the exempt ones report move-in dates, and the exempt ones lean newer.
How much of the rental stock is covered depends on how you count
Headline shares of covered units mix up two different things. About 57% of Los Angeles County's population lives in a city or area with a local cap, but covered units equal about 44% to 48% of the county's renter households: buildings built after each ordinance's cutoff, houses and condos stay exempt even inside a capped city.
In the City of Los Angeles, the share runs from 51% to 69% depending on the method, all three of them defensible. The parcel roll count includes owner-occupied units and misses condo-mapped rentals, which is why it sits 12% below the city's registry. The familiar figure of about 73% divides registered units by occupied rentals only. We count these as observations, not findings: no method is the single right one.
On value, our study did not establish a price effect
We also tested whether buildings in cities that adopted a cap from 2017 to 2023 lost value against similar buildings in nearby cities without one, in two sales sources (County assessor transfers and MLS sales). Neither showed a measurable change at one, three or five years. That is not the same as no effect: the same test run on fake adoption dates one and two years early moved prices 3% to 5%, as much as the real dates (three years early, about 2% to 3%), so this design cannot detect an effect smaller than about 5% to 8% either way. We do not claim an answer on value.
Our closings on both sides of an ordinance
Three of our own sales sit where the new caps landed. Prices are public record and come from our closed-deal records; the dates show when each sold against the city's ordinance. None of them shows what the ordinance did to value: in each case interest rates and the market moved in the same period.
| Building | Closed | Price | Per unit | Cap rate | Against the local cap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1200 N H St, Oxnard (18 units) | 10/01/2021 | $4,350,000 | $241,667 | 4.73% | Before (Oxnard's cap took effect 06/02/2022) |
| 1200 N H St, Oxnard (18 units) | 05/27/2025 | $4,647,332 | $258,185 | 5.47% | After |
| 318 S Voluntario St, Santa Barbara (8 units) | 06/27/2019 | $2,295,000 | $286,875 | 4.98% | Before (ordinance adopted 10/06/2026) |
| 318 S Voluntario St, Santa Barbara (8 units) | 04/16/2021 | $2,610,000 | $326,250 | 4.84% | Before |
| 400 S Mentor Ave, Pasadena (21 units) | 05/31/2023 | $7,500,000 | $357,143 | 4.41% | After Measure H (2022) |
1200 N H St, Oxnard is the one building we sold on both sides of a cap. It sold for $4.35M in 10/2021, before Oxnard's ordinance took effect on 06/02/2022, and for $4.65M in 05/2025, after it. In the same period the 10-year Treasury yield went from about 1.6% to about 4.4%, and the cap rate on the sale went from 4.73% to 5.47%. The ordinance cannot be separated from rates and the market in one building, and we do not try. The deal stories: the 2021 sale and the 2025 sale.
318 S Voluntario St, Santa Barbara, an 8-unit building, sold through us in 06/2019 and again in 04/2021, both before the city's ordinance. Pasadena: we closed 17 apartment sales there before Measure H, all from 2015 to 2021, and one since, 400 S Mentor Ave in 05/2023. That count says nothing about Measure H on its own: our closings across every market fell from 62 in 2021 to between 23 and 38 a year since.
Our market pages cover these areas in more depth: Ventura and Santa Barbara, Glendale, Pasadena and Burbank and West LA and the beach cities, including Santa Monica.
For owners
What to do if you own a building in a capped city
- Confirm coverage on paper. Pull the certificate of occupancy date and count every unit on the parcel, including ADUs, before you serve a notice or price a sale.
- Register and pay the fees on time. Most programs here require a yearly registration and a per-unit fee.
- Serve increases on the city's calendar. Each program starts its year in its own month, from January in Pomona to October in Pasadena, and most allow one increase in any 12 months.
- Price a sale on the rent roll as it is. A buyer values today's rents and the turnover they expect. Show in-place and market rents side by side, with move-in dates, so the buyer can underwrite the gap.
- Watch the dates that move your city: Santa Barbara 11/05/2026 and 01/01/2027, Santa Monica's vote 11/03/2026, Pomona 12/31/2026, Los Angeles 07/01/2027.
Methodology: how we built this guide
- City figures
- Each allowable increase, formula and coverage rule was read on 10/24/2026 at the city's or county's own page, ordinance or clerk record, or at the California Attorney General's rent cap page where the city confirms it. Where a city publishes no dated figure, we say so. Santa Barbara is shown at its first figure under the new ordinance, not at its temporary freeze.
- Our own data
- Rent rolls and underwriting models from LAAA Team deal files, 2016 to 2026: 27,060 unit rows after removing new construction and lease-up rolls, master leases, restricted and commercial units, and duplicates. Each building was matched to the County parcel roll for its year built; rent-controlled means the City of Los Angeles RSO rule (two or more units built on or before 10/01/1978). Loss to lease is one minus in-place rent over our market-rent estimate, averaged per building and compared within the same year. Ranges are 95% intervals with errors clustered by building.
- How results were graded
- Hypotheses and the analysis plan were written before any outcome was read. Each result was checked by reviewers who saw only the hypotheses, the method and the results, and was graded A (stated flat), B (stated with its qualifier), C (an observation) or D (not claimed). No result here reached A.
- Covered share
- Covered units from the County parcel roll with each ordinance's rule applied to every parcel of two or more units; rental units from the Census Bureau's 2023 five-year American Community Survey (renter-occupied plus vacant for rent and rented, not occupied); the City Controller's registry count.
- Value test
- Stacked difference in differences across caps that took effect 01/2017 to 12/2023, against same-county cities without a cap within 10 miles, in County assessor transfers and MLS sales separately, with placebo dates at 12, 24 and 36 months.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the maximum rent increase in Los Angeles in 2026?
For a rent-stabilized (RSO) unit in the City of Los Angeles, 3% from 07/01/2025 through 06/30/2027. For a building not under the RSO but over 15 years old, AB 1482 allows up to 5% plus regional CPI, which is 8.7% in the Los Angeles area for increases from 08/01/2026.
Which buildings are under rent control in Los Angeles?
In the City of Los Angeles, the RSO covers rental properties of two or more units first built on or before 10/01/1978. Newer buildings fall under the Just Cause Ordinance and, if over 15 years old, AB 1482. Other cities in the county use their own cutoffs, most often 02/01/1995.
Does Santa Barbara have rent control?
The city adopted a rent stabilization ordinance on 10/06/2026, 4 to 3. It is scheduled to take effect 30 days after adoption, 11/05/2026, unless a qualifying referendum petition, filed within 30 days of the City Clerk's attestation, suspends it. Covered rents are frozen through 12/31/2026; from 01/01/2027 the cap is 60% of CPI or 3%, whichever is less, with 2.1% as the first figure, plus a rental registry. Our Santa Barbara guide keeps the status current.
Does Oxnard have rent control?
Yes. Since 06/02/2022, Oxnard caps increases on rental buildings with a certificate of occupancy on or before 02/01/1995 at 4% a year, one increase in any 12 months.
Is Ventura rent controlled?
The City of Ventura has no local apartment cap. On 05/27/2025 its council directed staff on tenant protections but did not move forward on rent stabilization or a rental registry. AB 1482 applies to most buildings over 15 years old, at up to 8.6% for increases from 08/01/2026 to 07/31/2027.
Does rent control lower a building's value?
Our own test of cities that adopted caps from 2017 to 2023 did not establish a price effect either way; the design could not detect an effect smaller than about 5% to 8%. What we did find, in City of Los Angeles buildings we underwrote, is that rent-controlled units sit further below market rent, and more so the longer the tenant has stayed.
What is the difference between AB 1482 and a local rent control ordinance?
AB 1482 is the statewide cap: 5% plus regional CPI, up to 10%, on most buildings over 15 years old, through 01/01/2030. A local ordinance replaces it with a lower cap, usually tied to CPI, on older buildings in that city, and adds its own registry, fees and eviction rules.
Can a rent-controlled unit go to market rent when a tenant moves out?
Yes. Under the Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act, a landlord may generally set the rent for a new tenancy after the prior tenant moves out voluntarily; the local cap then applies to increases on that new rent.
Know what your rent roll is worth
If you own in a capped city and are weighing a sale, we underwrite your rent roll the way a buyer will, unit by unit, so the number holds up in escrow.
Get a valuation of your buildingSources
- Los Angeles Housing Department, renter protections and RSO overview, read 10/24/2026: housing.lacity.gov
- Los Angeles Housing Department, renter protections (allowable increase 07/01/2025 to 06/30/2027), read 10/24/2026: housing.lacity.gov
- Los Angeles City Clerk, Council File 23-1134 (votes of 11/12/2025 and 12/12/2025), read 10/24/2026: cityclerk.lacity.org
- Los Angeles Ordinance No. 188795, effective 02/02/2026, read 10/24/2026: cityclerk.lacity.org
- Los Angeles City Controller, RSO analysis (2024 data), read 10/20/2026: controller.lacity.gov
- Los Angeles County DCBA, permanent rent stabilization ordinance fact sheet (effective 04/01/2020), read 10/24/2026: dcba.lacounty.gov
- Los Angeles County Department of Consumer and Business Affairs, Rent Stabilization Program, read 10/24/2026: dcba.lacounty.gov
- Santa Monica Rent Control Board, 2026 general adjustment notice, read 10/24/2026: www.santamonica.gov
- City of Santa Monica, Measure RC (11/2022), read 10/24/2026: www.santamonica.gov
- City of Santa Monica, Measure GG (11/03/2026 ballot), rent control administrative fee, read 10/20/2026: www.santamonica.gov
- City of West Hollywood, Rent Stabilization newsletter, Summer 2026 (2.75% general adjustment), read 10/24/2026: www.weho.org
- West Hollywood Municipal Code 17.36.020, read 10/24/2026: ecode360.com
- City of Beverly Hills, Rent Stabilization, read 10/24/2026: www.beverlyhills.org
- City of Culver City, Rent Control and Tenant Protection Measures, read 10/24/2026: www.culvercity.gov
- City of Pasadena, Rental Registry (2.50% annual general adjustment), read 10/24/2026: www.cityofpasadena.net
- City of Pasadena, Rent Stabilization overview, read 10/24/2026: www.cityofpasadena.net
- City of Inglewood, Allowable Rent Increases, read 10/24/2026: www.cityofinglewood.org
- City of Pomona, Rent Stabilization Program, read 10/24/2026: www.pomonaca.gov
- City of Baldwin Park, Rent Stabilization Ordinance, read 10/24/2026: www.baldwinpark.com
- City of Bell Gardens, Community Development FAQs, read 10/24/2026: www.bellgardens.org
- City of Bell Gardens, Ordinance No. 925, read 10/24/2026: www.bellgardens.org
- City of Cudahy, Rent Stabilization FAQ, read 10/24/2026: www.cityofcudahyca.gov
- City of Huntington Park, Rent Stabilization Program, read 10/24/2026: www.hpca.gov
- Huntington Park Municipal Code, Title 8, Chapter 21, read 10/24/2026: ecode360.com
- City of Maywood, Housing Division, read 10/24/2026: www.cityofmaywood.com
- California Attorney General, local rent caps, read 10/24/2026: oag.ca.gov
- California Civil Code section 827 (notice of a rent increase): leginfo.legislature.ca.gov
- U.S. Treasury, daily par yield curve rates (10-year, monthly average): home.treasury.gov
- LAAA Team closed-deal records (track record)
- City of Oxnard, Ordinance No. 3013 (rent stabilization), read 10/24/2026: oxnard.gov
- Ojai Municipal Code, rent stabilization (Sec. 11-1), read 10/24/2026: ecode360.com
- City of Ojai, Rent Stabilization FAQ, read 10/24/2026: ojai.ca.gov
- City of Thousand Oaks, Housing (rent control), read 10/24/2026: www.toaks.gov
- City of Ventura, council minutes 05/27/2025 (item 14), read 10/24/2026: www.cityofventura.ca.gov
- City of Santa Barbara, Rent Stabilization, read 10/24/2026: santabarbaraca.gov
- City of Santa Barbara, Ordinance No. 2026-6206 (temporary moratorium), read 10/24/2026: santabarbaraca.gov
- Santa Barbara City Charter, Sec. 514 (ordinances effective after 30 days), read 10/24/2026: ecode360.com
- Santa Barbara City Charter, Sec. 1303 (elections), read 10/24/2026: ecode360.com
- California Elections Code section 9237 (referendum petition), read 10/24/2026: leginfo.legislature.ca.gov
- California Elections Code section 9241 (council action on a referendum), read 10/24/2026: leginfo.legislature.ca.gov
- Noozhawk, new coalition wants voters to decide on Santa Barbara rent control law, 09/24/2026: www.noozhawk.com
- Noozhawk, petitions circulate, 10/16/2026: www.noozhawk.com
- Santa Barbara Independent, the long road to Santa Barbara's rent stabilization ordinance, 10/14/2026: www.independent.com
- California Civil Code section 1947.12 (AB 1482 rent cap; in effect until 01/01/2030), read 10/24/2026: leginfo.legislature.ca.gov
- California Civil Code section 1954.52 (Costa-Hawkins exemptions), read 10/24/2026: leginfo.legislature.ca.gov
- California Civil Code section 1954.53 (rent for a new tenancy), read 10/24/2026: leginfo.legislature.ca.gov
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Los Angeles area CPI, April 2026 (+3.7%), read 10/24/2026: www.bls.gov
- California Department of Industrial Relations, California CPI (April 2026, +3.6%), read 10/24/2026: www.dir.ca.gov
- California Secretary of State, Statement of Vote, 11/06/2018 (Prop 10), read 10/24/2026: elections.cdn.sos.ca.gov
- California Secretary of State, Statement of Vote, 11/03/2020 (Prop 21), read 10/24/2026: elections.cdn.sos.ca.gov
- California Secretary of State, Statement of Vote, 11/05/2024 (Prop 33), read 10/24/2026: elections.cdn.sos.ca.gov
- AB 1157 (2025 to 2026), vote and status history, read 10/24/2026: leginfo.legislature.ca.gov
- California Secretary of State, qualified ballot measures (11/03/2026), read 10/24/2026: www.sos.ca.gov
- City of Pasadena, resolution certifying Measure H, 12/12/2022, read 10/24/2026: ww2.cityofpasadena.net
- City of Santa Ana, rent stabilization and just cause ordinances adopted, read 10/24/2026: www.santa-ana.org
- City of Salinas, Referendum on Ordinance 2687, read 10/24/2026: www.salinas.gov
- Town of Fairfax, renter protections (Measure I), read 10/24/2026: townoffairfaxca.gov
- City of Burbank, Measure RC (11/2020), read 10/24/2026: burbankca.gov
- City of Claremont, Rental Housing, read 10/24/2026: www.claremontca.gov
- City of Half Moon Bay, Ordinance 2024-05 (rent stabilization), read 10/24/2026: halfmoonbay.gov
- City of Concord, Rent Stabilization and Just Cause for Eviction, read 10/24/2026: www.cityofconcord.org
- City of Oakland, allowable rent increases, read 10/24/2026: oaklandca.gov
- San Leandro Municipal Code, rent stabilization (Ord. 2026-001), read 10/24/2026: ecode360.com
- Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, Ordinance 2024-0060, read 10/24/2026: file.lacounty.gov
Market information as of 10/24/2026, not legal advice. Rent control rules change; confirm the current rule with your city or county before acting. LAAA Team of Marcus & Millichap.