Noticing Required by Landlords

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Required Notices

The City of Petaluma currently requires Landlords who own 4 or more units within the City of Petaluma to provide tenants with the below notices when necessary.

Landlords who are exempt (see exemption information here) from the ordinance must provide notice of exemption to tenants in the rental agreement that the residential property are exempt from the ordinance. Specific language is required and can be found here. Failure to provide notice of exemption when serving a no-fault termination will entitle the tenant to relocation assistance.

This requirement of noticing is part of the City’s Residential Tenancy Protections (Tenant Protections) that took effect on June 15, 2023. These Petaluma Tenant Protections are more protective than the California’s Tenant Protection Act of 2019 (TPA) which took effect on January 1, 2020. 

To learn more about the Tenant Protections in Petaluma, click here. 

 

Notice of Tenant Rights: English  |  Español

This notice must be provided to tenants by the landlords when:

• Entering or renewing into a rental agreement; or
• Raising the rent; or
• If the City’s tenant protections are updated, tenants must be notified within 30 days; or
• Before and after selling or acquiring title to the property where the tenant resides.

Notice of Termination: English  |  Español

This notice must be provided when the landlord needs to terminate a tenancy.

• The tenant “at-fault” justifications for terminating a tenancy permitted under the TPA include the following:
  • Failure to pay rent: The tenant failed to pay rent within three days of receiving written notice from the landlord demanding payment.
  • Breach of rental agreement:The tenant has violated a material term of the rental agreement, received notice, and did not comply.
  • Tenant illegal activity: The tenant has committed criminal activity on the property or at the owner or owner’s agent.
  • Unlawful use of premises: The tenant is using the premises for an unlawful purpose as described in Section 1161 of the Civil Code
  • Nuisance: The tenant has maintained, committed, or permitted a nuisance.
  • Failure to Give Access: The tenant has refused to provide legal access to the landlord after written notice.
  • Committing Waste: Tenant has committed waste as described in Section 1161 of the Civil Code.
  • Refusal to Enter a New Lease: The tenant had a written lease after the effective date of the Ordinance and after a written request from the landlord, the tenant refused to execute a written renewal of the lease with similar terms.
  • Prohibited Assignment, Subletting: Assignment or subletting the premises in violation of the tenant’s lease.
  • Failure to Vacate: The tenant fails to vacate after their termination as an employee to the landlord.
  • Failure to Deliver Possession: The Tenant fails to deliver possession of the property after providing landlord written notice of intent to terminate the real property.

The “No-fault” reasons for terminating a tenancy permitted under the TPA include the following and require additional noticing as noted below:

• Permanent withdrawal from rental market - Require Notice 6L: English  |  Español
• Owner to occupy dwelling unit - Require Notice 6M: English  |  Español
• Substantial rehabilitation for health and safety - Require Notice 6N: - English  |  Español
• Government Order - The owner is complying with either an order issued by a government agency or court that requires tenant to vacate the property.

Failure to provide these notices could affect your ability to raise rents or evict a tenant.

Landlords are required to provide an accurate translation of the Notice of Tenant Rights in the language that the rental agreement or lease was negotiated in.

Please complete one per unit. If there are multiple people listed on the lease, please notify each person on lease. Attach supplemental information if needed.

Relocation Assistance

To see if relocation assistance is required when evicting a tenant, view the chart on the Notice of Termination: English  |  Español

Rights to Relocation Assistance

If Landlord seeks to terminate the tenancy to Permanently withdraw the Unit from the Market, Owner to Occupy Unit, or for Substantial Rehabilitation, or Government Order, the tenant is entitled to relocation assistance. The assistance can be a direct payment or credit towards payments due. (PMC Section 6.60.080)

Amount of relocation assistance:

• 250% of one month of rent or $9,000, whatever is less
  Right of First Refusal

If a tenancy is terminated for a “no-fault” reason, and the unit becomes available within six months after the date the unit is vacated, the displaced tenant shall have first right of refusal to return to the dwelling unit. (Petaluma Municipal Code (PMC Section 6.60.090(B)).