Here at Advantage Property Management Services, we've stayed vigilant in updating landlords and property owners on the multitude of new state laws impacting the rental market in California. Most of those laws affect landlords statewide, but the one we're talking about today hits a little closer to home.
On February 4, 2025, the Alameda County Board of Supervisors unanimously voted to enforce tenant protections related to just-cause evictions.
While just cause eviction laws have already been implemented statewide, this legislation will add additional protections for tenants in unincorporated parts of the county.
This new local law took effect on March 6, 2025. While landlords here have already had to adjust to the just cause eviction process in the past year, it's important to understand these additional addendums if you own property specifically in unincorporated areas in Alameda County.
Read on to learn more about these protections and how they affect you when evicting tenants.
Additional Tenant Protections for Alameda County
This new legislation for Alameda County aims to address the power disparity between landlords and tenants in affordable housing. The Board of Supervisors' balancing act has been to appease tenant advocate groups with protections for renters without harming fair and honest landlords.
It should be noted that these new regulations only apply to single-family homes of property owners who own more than five rental units in unincorporated areas of the county.
Here are the additional tenant protections that now apply in unincorporated Alameda County:
When a tenant is evicted through a no-fault eviction and any household member is under 18, disabled, or qualifies as lower-income, they must be given a 90-day notice to vacate. This lengthens the notice window for no-fault evictions, which is normally 60 days in California.
The landlord must file this type of eviction notice with the Alameda County Office of Housing and Community Development within three days of serving it.
In addition, landlords must compensate the displaced household with two months' rent when evicting a tenant for a no-fault reason. This also strengthens California's standard just-cause eviction law, which normally only requires the landlord to provide one month's rent or waive the tenant's last month's rent payment.
Finally, the new regulation offers stricter protections against retaliatory actions taken by landlords against tenants who make formal complaints about the habitability of their units. This section of the law is mostly repetitive of existing laws and seems to only act as further ammunition in legal cases against landlord retaliation.
All of these additional protections are active and applicable for evictions now. If you own more than five rental units in unincorporated areas of Alameda County, you must adapt to these new rules immediately.
The Just Cause Eviction Process
As mentioned, these protections were designed as an addendum to California's Just Cause Eviction law that took effect statewide in 2020.
These protections only apply to very specific parts of Alameda County.
The just cause eviction process applies to all parts of California. The law is much more nuanced and complicated and has various exemptions and considerations for each eviction situation.
To learn more about the ins and outs of just cause evictions in California, check out our Legal Guide To Just Cause Evictions For California Landlords.
As a brief refresher, here are the valid "at-fault" and "no-fault" reasons for eviction in the state:
At-Fault Evictions
At-fault evictions include any situation in which the tenant is evicted due to their own actions or neglect. These are more traditionally what people think of when they think "eviction."
These reasons include:
Non-payment of rent
Violations of the lease agreement, such as unauthorized pets or other occupants
Excessive property damage intentionally caused by the tenant
Acting as a nuisance to other tenants on the property, such as through excessive noise or harassment
Using the property for illegal activity
Denying the landlord legal access to the property
Refusing to sign a new lease at the end of the term and remaining in the unit
No-Fault Evictions
No-fault evictions are a little trickier and include more protections for the tenant involved in one. These include any eviction where the landlord must recover possession of the property despite the tenant having done nothing wrong.
These reasons include:
When the property is being demolished or requires substantial remodeling
In rare cases, the landlord may be forced to evict the tenant due to a government order. Redevelopment projects, health and safety issues, and code enforcement are the most common causes of this
If the owner moves in to the property or plans to use the property to house an immediate family member
If the property owner plans to permanently remove the property from the rental market and has no plans to re-rent it
Each of the different reasons for no-fault evictions has its own unique rules and restrictions. We highly encourage you to read our guide if you find yourself in one of these situations.
Implementation for Your Rental Units
The first step in implementing new eviction practices in your rental properties is to determine whether these protections even apply to you.
As mentioned, these protections went live on March 6, so they are now applicable in Alameda County. Your first step is determining if your rental properties are in an unincorporated community in Alameda.
Unincorporated communities include:
Ashland
Castlewood
Castro Valley
Cherryland
Fairview
Happy Valley
Hillcrest Knolls
San Lorenzo
Sunol
You can learn more on Alameda County's website.
Beyond this, the amount of property you own here matters as well. If you own less than five rentals in these communities, then you're exempt. Five or more, and you have to follow the new eviction rules.
Support for Alameda County Landlords
Here at Advantage Property Management Services, we've serviced rental property owners all over Alameda County for 15 years. In that time, we're proud to say we've not had a single eviction in the properties we manage.
We've made it our mission to offer our clients full-service property management that includes a deep understanding of California rental laws as they change (which happens often!).
To get more of your legal questions answered, check out our Legal FAQs.
If you're burdened by the ever-more-complicated laws affecting landlords in California, reach out to us today. We service rental properties in Pleasanton, Livermore, Dublin, Castro Valley, San Ramon, and beyond.
Contact us today for a free consultation.
Additional Resources:
A Guide for Landlords on California’s New Rental Laws in 2025
Disabled Tenant Rights in California: How to Make Your Rental Property Accessible
