Is my apartment rent controlled in San Francisco?

San Francisco has two separate protections that people both call "rent control", and you can have one without the other. Price control — the cap on how much your rent can go up each year — generally applies to buildings of two or more units whose first certificate of occupancy was issued on or before June 13, 1979. Just-cause eviction protection under the same Rent Ordinance reaches much further. Here is how to work out which applies to you.

1. Find the building's certificate of occupancy date

San Francisco rent control is tied to when the building was first approved for occupancy, not to when you moved in or what your lease says. If the first certificate of occupancy was issued on or before June 13, 1979 and the building has two or more units, it is the standard case for coverage. You can look up building records by address on the SF Property Information Map.

2. Check whether state law carves your unit out

California's Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act, in effect since January 1, 1996, removes some units from local price control even in old buildings:

• Single-family homes and condominiums that can be sold separately from any other dwelling unit are generally exempt from the local rent cap.
• Units first certificated after the local cutoff date are exempt from the cap.
• It also allows vacancy decontrol: when a tenant moves out voluntarily, the owner may reset the rent to market for the next tenant. The annual cap then applies again to that new tenancy — so a high starting rent does not mean the unit is uncontrolled.

3. Even outside the rent cap, you probably still have just cause

The Rent Ordinance's just-cause eviction rules cover far more tenancies in San Francisco than the price cap does. A landlord generally needs one of the specific reasons listed in the ordinance to end a tenancy. Being outside price control is not the same as being outside the ordinance, and this is the single most common misunderstanding tenants arrive with.

4. Ask the Rent Board

The San Francisco Rent Board counsels tenants by phone and in person, publishes the current annual allowable increase, and is where petitions are filed — including petitions over an increase you believe exceeds the limit. That is the authoritative answer for your address; this page is the orientation.

5. Look up the block on the map

Find A Crib maps San Francisco from official SF Rent Board owner reports. One caveat matters and we will not soften it: the San Francisco data is anonymized to the block, not the individual address. It shows you where rent-controlled units are reported across the city and what owners reported about them — it cannot tell you the status of your specific unit. Use it to orient yourself, then confirm with the certificate of occupancy date and the Rent Board.

What if the rent cap doesn't cover me?

California's statewide law AB 1482 caps annual increases for many units that local ordinances do not reach. The cap is tied to regional CPI and changes every year, so check the current figure with the Rent Board or the state rather than relying on a number you read somewhere — including here.

Official sources

• San Francisco Rent Board — counselling, petitions, and the current annual allowable increase
• sfrb.org — Rent Board fact sheets and forms
• SF Property Information Map — building records by address
• San Francisco Tenants Union — tenant counselling

Find A Crib is an informational tool, not a law firm. This guide is general information about the San Francisco Rent Ordinance and California state law, not legal advice. For your specific situation, contact the Rent Board or a tenant attorney/legal-aid group.