Owning a rental home in California can be a profitable venture. However, there are a lot of requirements that landlords in California must meet, many of which aren’t required of landlords in other states. It’s critical that your lease provide these mandatory disclosures.

First, if the lease was signed after 2012, and you do not wish for your tenant to smoke on the premises, your lease must include a statement describing the areas where smoking is prohibited or limited.

For example, if your tenants are only allowed to smoke outside, you would include a notice that smoking inside is prohibited.

You must also notify prospective tenants about the registered sexual offender database. The following statement must be included in your lease: “ Notice: Pursuant to Section 290.46 of the Penal Code, information about specified registered sex offenders is made available to the public via an Internet Web site maintained by the Department of Justice at www.meganslaw.ca.gov.

Depending on an offender’s criminal history, this information will include either the address at which the offender resides or the community of residence and zip code in which he or she resides.” This information is provided to potential tenants to allow them to determine whether there are sex offenders in the neighborhood before they sign the lease.

If a landlord has applied for a permit to demolish a rental unit, he or she must give written notice about the application to prospective tenants before taking a deposit. Therefore, it may be illegal in California for a landlord to ask a tenant to sign a lease, and then demolish other apartment buildings next door – that is information a potential tenant would want to know before renting the property.

Landlords also must give the tenants notice about any pest control company disclosure the landlord has received. That disclosure must describe which bugs or animals need to be controlled, which pesticides will be used and their active ingredients, the schedule of pest control services, and a warning that pesticides are toxic.

This will prevent potential renters who may be sensitive to chemicals in pesticides from being exposed to them accidentally.

If the gas or electric service to the tenant’s rental unit also serves other rental units, the landlord must tell the potential tenant how the costs will be fairly divided before a lease is signed. For example, a landlord cannot charge one particular tenant for more than his or her share of the electricity used by the whole building.

Older buildings also have additional disclosures required. If the building was built before 1978, the landlord must disclose if there’s any lead-based paint in the unit, as well as give the tenant a copy of the federal government’s pamphlet called “Protect Your Family From Lead in the Home”, in addition to a written Disclosure of Information on Lead-Based Paint and/or Lead-Based Paint Hazards.

The landlord is not required to remove the paint. Also, if the home was built before 1981, it could contain asbestos, which is dangerous if the fibers are inhaled. It’s recommended that landlords notify tenants if asbestos is discovered in the rental property

Landlords are also legally required to notify prospective tenants if the property has been used for production of methamphetamine. A unit that is found to be contaminated with a meth lab must be vacated until a local health officer deems it is safe. If a tenant wants to rent that property, the tenant must be notified of the problem.

If a death has occurred in the rental unit in the last three years, the tenant must tell a prospective tenant about the death, as well as the manner of death, unless it was due to AIDS.

Finally, if the landlord knows or has reason to know that there is mold in the rental home which poses a health threat, or is excessive by law, the landlord must give the prospective tenant a written disclosure.

The State Department of Health Services has developed a consumer handbook which tells about the potential health risks from mold, which must be given to the potential tenant.

Those are a list of state disclosures that must be present when you are renting a rental unit. In addition, some cities in California have laws that limit the amount of rent that can be charged (rent control), and if your rental unit is subject to rent control laws, there may be additional disclosures required, depending on the local city laws.

Also, there are often city and county codes which must be met, some of which may require extra disclosures be given to prospective tenants.

As you can see, following all of the requirements under California law in renting a rental unit can be a difficult task. In most cases, in order to legally protect yourself by law, it’s best to hire a knowledgeable California real estate attorney who can help you with your lease.

Always make sure you speak with an attorney in your area to insure you meet all local laws and regulations. If you are in the Oakland – Walnut Creek area, call Robert Levy, Oakland real estate attorney, at (925) 708-3306. I am happy to give you a consultation on your case. Call to learn more.

If you stop paying your mortgage payments or the payments on your home equity loan, the lender may choose to try to foreclose your home. This means that the bank can force a sale of your home to pay for the unpaid loan.

There are a couple of different types of foreclosures in California, judicial foreclosures and nonjudicial foreclosures. In California, nonjudicial foreclosures are much more common. In the paperwork the homeowner signed when obtaining the mortgage, the homeowner signed a deed of trust, which gave the lender the authority to sell the home if the borrower stops making payments.

In a nonjudicial foreclosure, if the home sells for less money than is owed on the mortgage, the lender cannot later sue the homeowner for the unpaid amount. For example, if a borrower owes $400,000 on their home, but the bank was only able to sell the home for $350,000 in the non-judicial foreclosure, the foreclosing lender cannot sue the borrower for the unpaid $50,000.

Although the banks can lose money in this type of foreclosure, they often prefer it because it’s cheaper and quicker.

Conversely, a judicial foreclosure involves filing a lawsuit to get a court order to sell the home. In a judicial foreclosure, a home is usually auctioned, and the lender is allowed to obtain a judgment against the borrower if the home is sold for less than the amount of the unpaid mortgage. Fortunately, judicial foreclosures are far less common in California than non-judicial foreclosures.

In a non-judicial foreclosure, before foreclosing, the bank must call you to attempt to talk about your financial situation and to see if there is a way to avoid a foreclosure. After this conversation, the lender cannot start foreclosing for at least 30 days.

After the 30 days expires, the lender can record a Notice of Default, which is the beginning of the non-judicial foreclosure process. Once this notice is issued, the foreclosing lender must wait 90 days before taking further steps toward a foreclosure sale.

If you don’t pay the amount of the default during that 90 day period, a Notice of Sale will be recorded and mailed, which states that your home will be sold in about 21 days. After the 21 days, the property can be sold at public auction. You have until five days before the foreclosure sale to stop the process by “curing” the amount of the default.

Finally, after the home is sold, the new owner has to give you a three-day notice to move, and if you refuse to move, the new owner must go through an eviction process in court which can take weeks.

The prospect of a foreclosure can be extremely scary for a homeowner. The good news is that if you are falling behind on your payments, you can’t be kicked out of your home immediately.

You have a substantial amount of time during which you can try to work with the bank, come up with the funds to pay, or make alternative plans for housing if you decide that the home cannot be saved.

If you want to stop a foreclosure, there are a variety of different methods to do that. Which one is best for you depends on your particular situation. You could choose to file for bankruptcy, ask the bank to allow a short sale, attempt to do a refinance, offer a deed in lieu of foreclosure (handing over your property before the foreclosure), challenge the foreclosure in court, or ask the lender for a forbearance.

All of these options are used in different circumstances, and all may prevent the foreclosure process.

If you are facing foreclosure, don’t go it alone. An experienced real estate attorney can be a valuable asset on your behalf to help you navigate which options are best for you. The attorney can also help work with the lender on your behalf, or attempt to stop the foreclosure entirely, depending on your particular situation.

If you are in the Bay Area, feel free to call Attorney Robert I. Levy, at 510-465-0025. He works with homeowners who are facing foreclosures to help them understand their legal options.