Can a tenant withhold rent for repairs in California?

In California, a landlord may not demand or collect rent, give notice of a rent increase or serve a three-day notice to pay rent or quit while the dwelling substantially lacks the basic habitability standards or is declared substandard, a housing enforcement officer has inspected and notified the landlord in writing to repair, and the conditions remain unabated without good cause 35 days after that notice was served, unless the tenant caused them. The tenant does not have to use any other remedy first. A landlord who violates the section is liable for the tenant’s actual damages and special damages of not less than $100 and not more than $5,000, the prevailing party recovers reasonable attorney’s fees and costs, and the court may order the landlord to abate the nuisance and make the repairs. The claim may be brought in small claims court if it is within that court’s limit. Separately, when a tenant sued for unpaid rent raises the landlord’s breach of habitability as a defense and the court finds a substantial breach, the court sets the reasonable rental value of the unit in its untenantable state, denies the landlord possession if the tenant pays the rent so adjusted within a reasonable time not exceeding five days, and limits the monthly rent to that value until repairs are completed. Repair-and-deduct is a different remedy with its own rules. This is Cal. Civ. Code § 1942.4; Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 1174.2.

WhatCalifornia
Rent withholdingNo rent due 35 days after an inspector’s repair notice
How it worksThe tenant may withhold rent after the required notice

What the statute says

“A landlord of a dwelling may not demand rent, collect rent, issue a notice of a rent increase, or issue a three-day notice to pay rent or quit …”

Quoted word for word from the section’s text.

Source

Cal. Civ. Code § 1942.4; Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 1174.2

Read the statute in the California Codes (California Legislative Information): leginfo.legislature.ca.gov.

Checked against the statute on November 15, 2026.

This is a summary of a published statute, not legal advice. Rules change, local ordinances can add to them, and the terms of a specific lease may differ. Check the citation and speak to a lawyer before acting.

How Seayora uses this rule

Every deadline on this page runs from the tenant’s notice. A repair request filed in Seayora keeps the date it was made and every update after it, on the website and both phone apps, so owner and tenant are working from the same date.

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