We’re helping get the word out about recently announced affordable housing preferences that give people who were displaced or are at risk of displacement in Berkeley priority when new units become available. You can get priority in affordable housing lotteries…
California has passed important legislation—Assembly Bill 12--that decreases the amount many landlords are allowed to charge tenants for security deposits. In Most Cases, the Security Deposit Amount is Limited to One Month’s Rent On or after July 1, 2024, landlords may…
UPDATE: New Address, Same Office Hours Our new office is located at 2000 Center Street, Suite 400, Berkeley, CA 94704, which is on the corner of Milvia and Center Streets, just around the corner from our prior location and still one block from the Downtown Berkeley BART station. After you enter the building at 2000 Center Street, take the elevator to the fourth floor. The…
FY 2024-25 Registration Fees and Payment Deadline At its March 21, 2024 Regular Meeting and Public Hearing, the Rent Board set FY 2024-25 annual registration fees for fully covered and Measure MM units.
- Fully covered units: $344 per unit.
- Most Measure MM units: $212 per unit.
- Affordable housing projects managed by a nonprofit with an operative…
Background: registration fee pass-through for pre-1999 tenancies, and the pass-through reimbursement programFor many years the Board has allowed landlords to pass-through a portion of the registration fee to tenants in fully covered units if the tenant household has occupied the unit since before 1999. Certain low-income tenants could apply to the Rent Board for reimbursement of this pass-through…
FY 2025-26 Registration Fees At its March 20, 2025 Regular Meeting, the Rent Board set FY 2025-26 annual registration fees for fully covered and partially covered units:
- Fully covered units: $344 per unit
- Partially covered units: $212 per unit
The Berkeley Rent Board has updated its rules regarding the filing of petition forms, response forms, and evidence. The updates will go into effect on June 16, 2025. As landlords and tenants increasingly utilize the internet and email in the hearing process, the new standards offer clear guidance on participating effectively while ensuring consistency and quality in the case…
MEASURE BB IMPOSED NEW REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS FOR CERTAIN UNITSMeasure BB, passed by Berkeley voters in November 2024, requires owners of certain units (such as units with government subsidies like Section 8 and Shelter + Care) to register with the Rent Board and pay registration fees. These units (“Measure BB Units”) were previously exempt from registration requirements.…
Expanding Communications Channels to Empower Berkeley Tenants & LandlordsThe Berkeley Rent Board is expanding its outreach efforts to reach more Berkeley tenants and landlords through digital channels. The Rent Board has launched four new official social media accounts (Instagram,…
In November 2024, Berkeley voters passed Measure BB, which, amongst other things, amended the Rent Ordinance to provide tenants an enforceable right to form Tenant Associations on certain properties. At their September 2025 meeting, the Rent Board adopted updates to several regulations impacting this new right:
- Tenant Associations may now seek rent…