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QUESTIONS?

For questions about your rights and obligations under the CSFRA or help with filing a petition, please contact the Rent Stabililzation Program at (650) 903-6136 or email mvrent@mountainview.gov.  

Required Information Sheet for New Leases and Rent Increases

The Rental Housing Committee has adopted new noticing requirements for covered rental units. At the start of a new tenancy and with each notice of increase of rent, landlords are required to distribute a CSFRA Information Sheet to tenants that describes the CSFRA and provides information for the Mountain View Rental Housing Helpline. The Information Sheet can be downloaded here.

 Rental Property Registration

2022 Workshop Schedule* (Register Here) 

Landlord workshops will be provided later this year to assist landlords/managers with these registration requirements.

A PDF of past rental property registration workshops can be found here.

On June 29, 2020 the Rental Housing Committee adopted mandatory registration for CSFRA covered units. Registration is due February 1st of each year, with a grace period of March 1st for 2021. Complete the registration form online at mvrent.mountainview.gov.

Owners/ Managers can:

  1. Register Rental Properties
  2. File for Rental Housing Fee Exemptions
  3. Manage Required Information
    • Owner/Manager Contact Information
    • New Tenancy Information
    • Tenant Turnover Information
  4. Submit Required Notices
    • Termination Notices
    • Banked Rent Increase Notices
    • Voluntary Tenant Buyout Information

Online Registration User Guide

RECEIVE REGULAR UPDATES BY EMAIL

Allowed Rent Increases

Each year, the RHC sets the Annual General Adjustment (AGA) for existing tenancies of CSFRA covered rental units. The AGA is the annually allowed rent increase rate that may be implemented by property owners from September 1 through August 31. If no increase is given during that time period, property owners may bank the increase and apply it during a subsequent year in conjunction with the new AGA. Only one increase is allowed during a 12 month period. Banked increases are subject to additional noticing requirements as well as Tenant Hardship Petitions.

Click here for the latest information regarding Annual General Adjustments of Rent ("AGA").

A template of an “Attachment to Notice of Annual General Adjustment and/or Banked Increase of Rent” is available here.


Base Rent
The reference point for which lawful rent is determined and adjusted under the CSFRA. For Tenancies that commenced on or before October 19, 2015, the base rent is the rent in effect on October 19, 2015. For tenancies that commenced after October 19, 2015, it is the rent initially paid by the tenant.

Rent
All periodic payments and all non-monetary consideration including, but not limited to, the fair market value of goods, labor performed or services rendered to or for the benefit of the Landlord under a Rental Housing Agreement concerning the use or occupancy of a Rental Unit and premises and attendant Housing Services, including all payments and consideration demanded or paid for parking, Utility Charges, pets, furniture, and/or subletting.

RENT ROLL BACK

The Base Rent for tenancies that started on or before October 19, 2015 is the Rent in effect on October 19, 2015. For tenancies that started after October 19, 2015, the Base Rent is the initial rental rate charged upon initial occupancy. This Base Rent is effective from December 23, 2016 onward.  

JUST CAUSE FOR EVICTION Noticing

The Rental Housing Committee adopted new noticing and filing requirements for all covered rental units. The noticing and filing requirements are effective immediately and are detailed below.

Noticing Requirements
Any notice of termination, including non-payment of rent, given to a tenant shall include:

  • The specific reason for the termination;
  • That the Rental Unit is a Covered Unit under the CSFRA;
  • That the Tenant may seek assistance from the Mountain View Rental Housing Helpline, including the phone number at (650) 903-6136; and
  • In the event an ordinance is in effect regarding CSFRA covered units, a City provided fact sheet summarizing the rights and obligations of the ordinance must be given to the Tenant with any notice of termination

Filing Requirements
Housing providers must file a copy of the following documents with the RHC:

  • Copy of any termination notice must be submitted within 3 days of serving the notice on the tenant.
  • Copy of a summons, complaint of unlawful detainer or a judgment for an unlawful detainer against a tenant must be submitted within 7 days of serving the notice to the tenant.
  • Written notice to the RHC if a tenant vacates the rental unit either as a result of the termination notice or a subsequent action for unlawful detainer no later than 7 days after the tenant vacates the unit.

Please file notifications online, if possible, by logging on to the Mountain View Rent Portal. If you have not yet created an account please use the APN and PIN number provided on your Rental Housing Fee Invoice to create an account. If you no longer have access to this information, please contact andrea.kennedy@mountainview.gov to retrieve your APN and PIN number.

A Notification Template can be found here.

Just Cause Eviction Protections 

All Rental Units covered under CSFRA, both fully Covered  Rental Units with an initial certification of occupancy date before February 1, 1995 and partially Covered Rental Units with an initial certification of occupancy between February 1, 1995 and December 23, 2016 and to the extent permitted by law, rental units governed by Mountain View City Code Chapter 36, Article XIV (“Affordable Housing Program”) are subject to the Just Cause for Eviction Protections.

Under the CSFRA, termination notices are ONLY permitted for one of the following reasons:

  1. Failure to Pay Rent
  2. Breach of Lease
  3. Nuisance
  4. Criminal Activity
  5. Failure to Give Access
  6. Necessary and Substantial Repairs Requiring Temporary Vacancy
  7. Owner Move-in
  8. Withdrawal of the Rental Unit Permanently from Rental Market
  9. Demolition

Written Notice to Cease
For Breach of Lease, Nuisance, Criminal Activity and Failure to Give Access termination notices, the Landlord is required to first serve the Tenant with a Written Notice to Cease to provide the Tenant an opportunity to cure an alleged violation or problem prior to service of a notice to terminate tenancy.

Tenant Relocation Assistance – First Right of Return
For terminations based on Necessary and Substantial Repairs Requiring Temporary Vacancy, Owner Move-in, Withdrawal of the Rental Unit Permanently from Rental Market and Demolition, a Landlord is required to notify the Tenant of their right to Relocation Assistance and may be required to pay relocation assistance. The Tenant shall have a first right of return to the Rental Unit, if the Rental Unit is returned to the market by the Landlord or successor Landlord. 

Petitions for Individual Upward Adjustment of Rent

Landlords can file a petition for individual upward adjustment of rent to ensure a fair and reasonable rate of return. Petition forms can be downloaded here. File two copies of the entire petition packet, including the completed Petition Form(s), and all required attachments at:

City of Mountain View, Rental Housing Committee
500 Castro Street
Mountain View, CA 94041

Terms to Know

CSFRA:  Community Stabilization and Fair Rent Act

  1. Establishes a Rental Housing Committee
  2. Establishes a Base Rent for covered Rental Units
  3. Determines Allowable Rent Increases for covered Rental Units
  4. Establishes a Petition Process for individual rent adjustments 
  5. Provides Just Cause for Eviction
  6. Requires landlords to file Notices of Termination with the Rental Housing Committee

AGA CPI Instructions

  1. Go to data.bls.gov
  2. Click "data tools"
  3. Select "series report"
  4. Enter series number: CUURS49BSA0
  5. Select "retrieve data" 

Upward Adjustment of Rent CIP

For petitions for Upward Adjustment of Rent, the CIP-U All Items - San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA is used, selecting the last published month before the date of submission of the petition.

 

Upward Adjustment of Rent CIP Instructions

For additional help, please view the CPI Percentage for Fair Return Calculation Instructions worksheet.
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