The welcoming front entry of a Bay Vista–managed townhome.

Help for California landlords

If you're dealing with rent caps, security deposits, notices, or a tenant who stopped paying, the answers below are in plain English, from a team that works these rules every day. Or hand the whole rulebook to us.

Serving Contra Costa, Alameda, Marin & Sonoma counties

The rules keep changing. We keep up

Rent caps under AB 1482, the one-month deposit cap under AB 12, just-cause requirements, notice periods: California landlord law moves every year, and the penalties for getting it wrong land on the owner.

The guides below cover the questions Bay Area landlords ask us most, in plain English. This page is general information, not legal advice. For advice on your specific situation, talk to a California landlord-tenant attorney. Or let us run the property so compliance is our job, not yours.

What we keep compliant
  • Rent increases and AB 1482 caps
  • Security deposits under AB 12
  • Required notices, served properly
  • Just-cause rules when a tenancy ends
  • Screening within fair-housing law

Everything is handled

We place the tenant

Marketing across Zillow and the major Bay Area platforms, full screening, the lease, and the move-in walkthrough. Every showing is hosted by us. No placement fee.

We pay every property bill

Mortgage, insurance, property taxes, HOA, and utilities, all paid from rental income. Nothing forwards to your inbox.

We handle maintenance in-house

Repairs run through Bay Vista Construction, our CA-licensed general contractor. Optional for every owner, and the work is under warranty.

We run the day-to-day

Rent collection, tenant communications, inspections, lease renewals at no fee, and move-in/out documentation. All logged in your owner portal.

We keep the books

Monthly statements, ACH deposits, and year-end 1099 preparation, all in your owner portal.

You pay one annual rate

Custom-quoted per property. No leasing fee. No percentage of rent.

California landlord questions, answered

For covered properties, state law caps annual rent increases at 5% plus local inflation, never more than 10%, and requires just cause to end a tenancy. Many individually owned single-family homes and condos are exempt when the tenant receives the required written notice, and newer construction is exempt for its first 15 years. We track exactly which rules apply to each property we manage.

Since July 2024, California caps security deposits at one month's rent for most landlords, and pet deposits count inside that cap. Small landlords who are natural persons with no more than two rental properties and four total units can collect up to two months, except from service members. Deposit accounting and refund timelines run to the statute.

Move fast, but move correctly: the process starts with a proper written notice, served the right way, with the right contents. Errors restart the clock. If it goes further, we coordinate with eviction counsel and manage the process end to end, from notices through re-leasing. Careful screening is what keeps it rare.

Covered tenancies need a just-cause reason to end, either at-fault or no-fault, and no-fault endings can require relocation assistance. The right path depends on your property's status under AB 1482 and local rules, which is exactly the kind of thing we confirm before any notice goes out.

California requires rentals be maintained habitable, and slow repairs are how small issues become rent-withholding disputes. Our tenants reach us 24/7, emergencies dispatch immediately to Bay Vista Construction, and non-emergencies are handled the next business day under the spend threshold we agree with you upfront.

This page is general information, not legal advice. If you'd rather the compliance be someone else's job, that is what full-service management is: we run the tenancy to the statute, keep the paperwork straight, and you collect the deposit by ACH.

Hand the rulebook to us

Get help with my rental

What our owners actually say

Bay Vista owners, in their own words, from our public Google reviews.

★★★★★
We are so glad to have chosen Sean and Bay Vista Property Management to handle our rental property in Petaluma. They were professional, effective, quick at communicating and answering any questions-concerns we had and able to have our house rented in 10 days.
Alice Google review
★★★★★
We had a great experience working with Sean to prepare and lease our rental property. He gave us a realistic rental estimate, and we ended up leasing the home above our asking price.
Nathaniel Google review
★★★★★
Sean at Bay Vista Property Management was referred to me by my trusted real estate agent to manage my rental property. He is very experienced and efficient, he took the time to answer my questions about their services.
Gordon Google review
★★★★★
Had a wonderful experience dealing with Sean O'Farrell at Bay Vista. Extremely professional and efficient. He helped me to get a great tenant. Also helped me when they moved out.
Shamim Google review
★★★★★
As a Realtor, I'm always looking for trusted professionals to refer my clients to, especially when they decide that selling isn't the right move and would rather rent out their property.
Anna Google review
★★★★★
Great smooth transition from purchase to renting! Love their professional seamless efforts!
Steve Google review
★★★★★
Sean is very professional and had beautiful photos of my unit and we got renters the first weekend it was on the market. He made the process seamless and responds quickly when I reach out to him.
Janice Google review
★★★★★
I lived at Walnut Park Condominiums for seven years and worked with Sean O'Farrell throughout my time there. Sean was always professional, kind, responsive, and easy to get in touch with whenever I had a question or concern.
Joel Google review
★★★★★
Very professional, trustworthy.
Hossein Google review
★★★★★
Sean and the staff have been amazing with me as a new client. They walked me through their procedures and have been genuinely helpful as I navigate being a landlord.
Rose Google review

California landlord law, answered

For covered properties, state law caps annual rent increases at 5% plus local inflation, never more than 10%, and requires just cause to end a tenancy. Many individually owned single-family homes and condos are exempt when the tenant receives the required written notice, and newer construction is exempt for its first 15 years. We track exactly which rules apply to your property.
Since July 2024, California caps security deposits at one month's rent for most landlords (AB 12), and pet deposits count inside that cap. Small landlords who are natural persons with no more than two rental properties and four total units can collect up to two months, except from service members.
Serve a proper written notice, correctly, before anything else: errors restart the clock. Document everything. If you're a Bay Vista owner, call us; we handle the process end to end and coordinate with eviction counsel when it comes to that.
For a contested unlawful detainer you'll want one. We coordinate with experienced eviction counsel for our owners and manage everything around the case: notices, documentation, and re-leasing once the unit is back.
Keep the home habitable, respond to repairs, respect notice and entry rules, screen within fair-housing law, handle deposits to the statute, and follow rent-cap and just-cause rules where they apply. Or hire us and make that list our job.
No. This page is general information for landlords. For advice on your specific situation, consult a California landlord-tenant attorney.

Make compliance
our problem

Reach out with your property address and you'll hear from us the same day, from a person. If you'd rather the rules be our job, we'll show you the full service: the tenant, every property bill, every repair, every notice, run to the statute. No commitment.

Free, no obligation  ·  Takes 60 seconds  ·  Same-day response, from a person