California rental housing providers saw a mixed month: some state proposals that would have added new costs or operational restrictions appear to be stalling, but local regulation and litigation risk remain very real—especially in Southern California. For owners and managers, the big takeaway is that Sacramento may be slowing on a few fronts, while city and county-level compliance pressure continues to build.

At the statewide policy level, a number of bills opposed by the California Apartment Association are now unlikely to advance this year. Among them are AB 1963, which would have required acceptance of portable tenant screening reports and barred application fees in those cases, and AB 2616, which would have created an 82-degree indoor temperature standard while expanding tenants’ ability to install portable cooling devices. For housing providers, that is a notable short-term reprieve from several proposals that could have increased screening limits, habitability obligations, and compliance costs.

In Los Angeles, however, regulatory pressure remains elevated. The City’s new Just Cause Ordinance continues expanding eviction protections to many units outside the traditional RSO framework, including rented single-family homes, and LAHD says owners receiving the recent property-determination notice should expect an annual registration bill of $31.05 per rental unit unless they qualify for an exemption. At the same time, the city’s current RSO annual rent increase remains 3% through June 30, 2026, with an additional 1% allowed where the landlord provides both gas and electricity.

Southern California owners also received an important court win this month. On April 20, a California appeals court struck down Los Angeles’ rent-increase-triggered relocation assistance requirement for Costa-Hawkins-exempt units, finding that the rule improperly burdened state-law rent-setting rights. That follows the California Supreme Court’s decision earlier this month to leave intact the Pasadena-related precedent the appellate court relied on. Even so, Los Angeles County remains active on tenant protections: wildfire-related emergency price-gouging restrictions were extended through April 28, and the county also recently raised the minimum rent debt required before pursuing certain nonpayment evictions in unincorporated areas.

On the rental market side, conditions are softening in some areas but not collapsing. Zillow’s latest rent data showed the typical Los Angeles asking rent at $2,884 in February, up just 1.1% year over year, while renters in Los Angeles were still spending an estimated 33.9% of median income on a typical lease—one of the least affordable major markets in the country. Nationally, Zillow says an expanding supply of rentals is helping keep rent growth in check, and its April forecast projects only 1% multifamily rent growth and 2% single-family rent growth by year-end 2026.

Real estate trends also continue to favor renting over buying in California’s costlier metros. Zillow reported this month that Los Angeles leads the nation in “dual shopping,” with 12% of for-sale shoppers also browsing rentals; San Diego ranks second at 10.8%. That reflects persistent affordability strain in Southern California and helps explain why rental demand remains resilient even as rent growth stays modest. Meanwhile, transaction activity in Los Angeles multifamily remains uneven: The Real Deal, citing Kidder Mathews, reported that the broader L.A. multifamily market entered the year with 5.6% vacancy and flattened rents, while larger investment sales continue to feel the drag of Measure ULA.

This article has been prepared by the editorial staff of Apartment News Publications, Inc. (ANP) intended for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Readers should consult with qualified counsel regarding their specific circumstances. ANP, Covering Issues That Impact Landlords and Property Owners.