SF Laws to know about!

 Eviction is a legal process.

A landlord cannot legally lock out a tenant, throw away a tenant's possessions, shut off utilities, or engage in harassing behavior to remove a tenant. They must follow the legal process. 

Typically it requires a written notice, a lawsuit known as an unlawful detainer action, a judgment by the court, and a removal by the Sheriff.

It is highly recommended that you speak with an attorney. * 

• Most residential tenants in San Francisco have eviction protections. That means a landlord must have "just cause" to evict.
• These "just causes" can include scenarios where a tenant does not pay rent, is a nuisance, or breaches the lease. This is an "at fault" eviction.
• This can also include "no fault" evictions where a landlord wishes to move into a unit or wishes to get out of the rental business under the state Ellis Act. 

 Learn about the 16 just cause reasons to evict a tenant. 

 The Unlawful Detainer can only be filed in Superior Court after the eviction notice has expired.

If a tenant receives the Unlawful Detainer they have 10 business days to respond or they risk a default judgment. A default judgment means a tenant may have automatically lost their case.

If you are a tenant, and you receive an Unlawful Detainer Summons and Complaint, you should contact the Eviction Defense Collaborative at 415-659-9184 for free legal help. 

 Learn more about Unlawful Detainer action

• The details behind a owner or relative move in eviction are both very detailed and complicated. Before proceeding into a move in eviction it is imperative you consult with an attorney* before attempting to evict the tenant. 

Read more about owner move in evictions here!

• If your building was built before June 13th 1979 it is likely rent controlled!
• Many residential units built on or before June 13, 1979 have both rent control and eviction protection. 

Rent control means that landlords can typically only increase the rent by a certain percentage each year. 

• In some circumstances a landlord can increase rent over the allowable percentage. However, the landlord will need to follow rent increase laws.
• Some units may still be covered by the California Tenant Protection Act (AB 1482) even if it does not have rent control.

Certain evictions require relocation payments. This includes:

• Owner/ relative move-in evictions
• Ellis Act evictions
• Evictions based on sale of a condominium in accordance with a condominium conversion
• Evictions based on demolition/ permanent removal of the unit from housing use
• Evictions based on substantial rehabilitation
• Temporary eviction to perform capital improvement or rehabilitation work
• Temporary eviction to perform lead remediation/ abatement