Tenant harassment and cash-for-keys offers in California

What counts as harassment

Civil Code § 1940.2 prohibits a landlord, for the purpose of influencing a tenant to move out, from using or threatening force, making willful threats or engaging in menacing conduct that interferes with the tenant's quiet enjoyment, significantly and intentionally violating the entry rules in § 1954, or threatening to disclose a tenant's immigration status. A court can award a civil penalty for each violation. Lockouts and utility shutoffs are covered separately by § 789.3.

Many cities add their own anti-harassment ordinances, which may cover conduct such as repeated buyout pressure, refusing to accept rent, or failing to make repairs to drive tenants out. These rules and remedies vary by city.

Retaliation is also prohibited

Under Civil Code § 1942.5, a landlord may not raise the rent, reduce services, threaten or start an eviction, or take similar steps to retaliate against a tenant who has complained about habitability, contacted a public agency, organized with other tenants or exercised other legal rights. When the landlord acts within 180 days after certain protected acts, the law gives the tenant important protections in proving retaliation.

• Keep a dated log of incidents: what was said or done, by whom and who saw it.
• Save texts, emails, letters and voicemails.
• Respond in writing and stay calm; do not escalate.

How cash-for-keys offers work

A buyout is an agreement in which the landlord pays you to move out by a certain date. You have no obligation to accept, and a fair offer depends on what you would give up: a rent-controlled rent, just cause protection, relocation assistance you might be owed for a no-fault eviction, and claims about the deposit, repairs or harassment. In some cities the landlord must give a written disclosure before making an offer, file the agreement with the city, and give you a period to cancel after signing. For example, the City of Los Angeles requires a disclosure notice for buyouts of RSO units and allows the tenant to cancel within 30 days.

If you are in an eviction case, a settlement may look similar but is filed with the court and may include a judgment. Read it word by word.

Before you sign

Check the move-out date and what happens if you need a few more days, when and how the money is paid, whether the deposit is returned separately, whether any eviction case is dismissed and kept confidential, whether you give up claims, and whether the agreement affects your rental history. Ask for every promise to be in the written agreement. Payments may also have tax consequences. An attorney can tell you whether the offer is reasonable compared with your rights.