The short answer
Renting out an ADU makes you a landlord, with the city's and the state's tenant rules. In Los Angeles, the key points: a new ADU usually isn't under rent control itself, but adding one to a property built before October 1978 can bring the main house under the city's Rent Stabilization Ordinance. Eviction needs a legal reason, units must be registered every year, and rentals must be longer than 30 days.
Rent control in Los Angeles (RSO)
The Rent Stabilization Ordinance covers rental units built on or before October 1, 1978, but not a lot with just one single-family house. Adding an ADU changes that count. The Los Angeles Housing Department explains the common cases (ADU guidance, September 2025):
| The ADU | The ADU under the RSO? | The main house under the RSO? |
|---|---|---|
| A new detached ADU beside a pre-1978 house | Generally not | May become covered |
| A new attached ADU on a pre-1978 house | Generally not | Covered (the original house) |
| An ADU carved from living space in a pre-1978 house | May be | May be |
| An ADU converted from non-living space (such as an attached garage) of a pre-1978 house | No (Just Cause rules apply) | May become covered |
An ADU built within five years of withdrawing RSO units from the rental market (the Ellis Act) can itself be covered. Ask the Housing Department about your property before you rent.
Rent increases
- RSO units: up to 3% a year from July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027 (allowable increase bulletin).
- State cap (Tenant Protection Act): 5% plus inflation, at most 10%; 8.7% in the Los Angeles area from August 1, 2026 (LA County notice). Housing with a certificate of occupancy from the last 15 years is exempt, which covers most new ADUs (Civil Code § 1947.12).
- Los Angeles units outside the RSO: the city sets no cap of its own (the state cap above applies unless the unit is exempt), but if a tenant moves out after an increase above the lesser of inflation plus 5% or 10%, the landlord owes relocation assistance.
Evictions and registration
- In Los Angeles, the Just Cause Ordinance covers most units outside the RSO once a tenant has lived there six months or the first lease has ended: evictions need one of the listed reasons, and no-fault evictions require relocation assistance.
- State law (Civil Code § 1946.2) adds just-cause rules after 12 months, with an exemption for an owner who lives on the property and rents out no more than two units or bedrooms, including an ADU.
- Los Angeles requires every rental unit to be registered each year with the Rent Registry (Housing Department); the 2026 fee is $38.75 per RSO unit and $31.05 per Just Cause unit. Properties with two or more units are also inspected under the city's housing code program.
Short-term rentals
Junior ADUs must be rented for more than 30 days under state law, and most cities require the same for ADUs (each city page's rules table shows its rule). In Los Angeles, the city's home-sharing guidelines (2019) allow home-sharing in an ADU built since 2017 only if it's the host's primary residence, and never in an RSO unit.
Renting to a Section 8 voucher holder
- City of Los Angeles (HACLA): payment standards vary by ZIP code; from September 1, 2026, a one-bedroom ranges from $1,793 to $3,210 a month.
- Los Angeles County (LACDA): the Open Doors program offers a sign-on bonus, security-deposit help up to one month's rent, one month's rent if a family leaves without notice, and up to $3,000 for damage beyond the deposit.
- Ventura County: the Area Housing Authority serves Camarillo, Fillmore, Moorpark, Ojai, Simi Valley, Thousand Oaks and the unincorporated county, with ZIP-based payment standards from July 2, 2026. Ventura, Oxnard, Santa Paula and Port Hueneme have their own housing authorities.
See what rent could bring in with the rental income calculator. Also: insuring an ADU.
General information, not legal advice. Tenant law changes often and depends on your property's history; check with the Los Angeles Housing Department or your city before you rent.
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