Inglewood landlords must register every unit by October 1, cap increases at 8.8% (4 units or fewer) or 3.8% (5+), and pay relocation starting at 3x rent. Here's what goes on top of AB 1482.
Part of my city-by-city series. See every LA County city side by side →
In Inglewood, you can't legally collect rent until you have a piece of paper from the City. Not a building permit. Not a business license. A registration certificate.
Without it you can't raise the rent, you can't evict, and you can't even advertise the unit.
Yesterday I covered AB 1482, California's statewide rent control. That's the floor. Every day in this series I take one city and ask one question: is it just the state law here, or is there more on top? In Inglewood, there's a lot more on top.
Key takeaways from the video
- Covered Inglewood units must be registered with the city every year by October 1, and the certificate served on tenants before raising rent, evicting, or collecting rent.
- Buildings of four units or fewer: 5% plus inflation (8.8% for July 2026 to June 2027). Five or more units: the greater of 3% or inflation (3.8%).
- Only one increase per year, with 30 days notice, logged in the city's online registry.
- Substantial remodel is no longer a just cause reason in Inglewood (removed in 2021).
- No-fault relocation starts at three times monthly rent plus additions for children, tenure, and senior or disabled tenants, due within 15 days of the notice.
Chapters
- 0:00 No certificate, no rent
- 0:25 Is it just the state law?
- 0:46 1. Are you really in Inglewood?
- 1:16 2. Register every year
- 1:58 3. The four-unit line
- 2:58 Where state and city overlap
- 3:17 4. Exempt from the cap
- 3:50 5. Just cause
- 4:15 6. Relocation
- 5:00 7. Buyouts and harassment
- 5:28 Your Inglewood checklist
Read the full transcript
In Inglewood, you can't legally collect rent until you have a piece of paper from the city. Not a permit to build, not a business license, a registration certificate. And if you don't have it, you can't raise the rent, you can't evict, can't even advertise the unit I'm Tony Self, broker, property manager, with more than 30 years in real estate here in the South Bay. Yesterday, we covered AB 1482, California's statewide rent control, and all the great things about that law.
Every day, I will take one city and ask one question. Is it just a state law here, or is there more on top? Inglewood, there's a lot more on top. Before anything else, make sure your property is actually in the city of Inglewood.
Inglewood is an incorporated city. It writes its own rules. But an Inglewood mailing address doesn't always mean the city of Inglewood. For example, parts of 90304 zip code, like Lennox are unincorporated LA County.
Different government, different rent rules. And boy, are they different. You want to check the parcel, not the envelope. Now, registration.
If your units are covered, you register them with the city every year on or before October 1st. There is a per unit fee. You paid it on time, and you can pass half of it through to the tenant and spread that over 12 months. Pay it late.
You eat the whole thing. And then you have to serve a copy of that registration certificate on your tenant. No certificate. No rent increase.
No eviction. No collecting rent. One more thing. When you raise the rent, you log that increase with the city's online registry, which is not normal, but that's how they do it.
Here's where Inglewood gets interesting. There are two rule books, and the dividing line is four units. Four units or fewer, 5% plus inflation. Right now, for July 2026 through June 2027, 8.8%.
Now, yesterday, for AB 1482, it's 8.7% for LA and Orange County. I would caution to go with 8.7%. Now, five units or more, it's going to be 3% or inflation, whichever is greater. Right now, that's 3.8%.
Same city, same street, maybe 8.8 versus 3.8. And in both cases, one increase per year, not two, like the state allows with AB 1482. A 30-day notice, never more than 10%. So it's a big deal if you have a five-plex versus anything beyond that with a four-plex.
Some Inglewood properties are also covered by AB 1482, the state law. In LA County, the state cap right now is 8.7. So in a small building where both apply, the stricter number may be the one that controls. This is exactly the kind of thing you would run past your attorney before you serve a notice.
Now, who is exempt from Inglewood's rent cap? Single-family homes, condos, buildings first occupied after February 1, 1995, and new construction in the last 15 years. That comes from state law Costa-Hawkins The city can't cap those rents But here's the trap. Exempt from the rent cap does not mean exempt from everything.
Inglewood's just cause and relocation rules can still reach properties that the rent cap doesn't touch. So don't assume, ask. To end a tenancy in Inglewood, you need a reason the ordinance allows. At fault, not paying rent, breaking the lease and not fixing it, or a nuisance.
For no fault, you or a close relative moving in, taking the unit off the market, demolition with permits. And here's one that's gone. Substantial remodel. Inglewood took that off the list in 2021.
Under state law, a no-fault move-out costs you one month's rent. Not in Inglewood. It starts at three times the monthly rent. Then add $2,000 if there are minor children in the unit.
Then add more for how long they live there. $2,000, $3,000, $5,000, up to $7,500 for a senior or disabled tenant. And it's due within 15 days of the notice. So let's do the math.
$2,500 a month, six years in the unit. $7,500 plus $3,000. $10 ,500. Under the state law alone $2,500.
If you're buying in Inglewood, that number belongs in your offer. Want to do a buyout instead, cash for keys? In Inglewood, there's a written disclosure of the tenant's rights. The tenant gets 30 days to change their mind.
The payment has to be at least the relocation amount. And the agreement gets filed with the city within three days. And harassment is off the table. Cutting services, ignoring repairs, showing up without proper notice, or any type of pressure.
Do it on purpose, and damages can be tripled. So here is your checklist. So if you own in Inglewood, confirm the parcel is really in the city. Register every year by October 1st.
Serve that certificate on every tenant. Know your tier, four and under, or five and up. One increase a year, 30 days notice, log it with the city. And before anyone moves out, price a relocation and call your attorney.
So, Inglewood, just a state law? No. A lot more on top. Tomorrow, the next city, or rather county, is the unincorporated areas of Los Angeles County I'm Tony Self, Harcourts Hunter Mason.
I'm a broker, not your attorney. I'll see you tomorrow.
Transcript from the video's final-cut captions. Informational only, not legal advice.
First, are you really in Inglewood?
Inglewood is an incorporated city and it writes its own rules. But an Inglewood mailing address doesn't always mean the City of Inglewood. Parts of the 90304 ZIP code, like Lennox, are unincorporated LA County. Different government, different rent rules.
Check the parcel, not the envelope.
Register every year by October 1
If your units are covered, you register them with the City every year, on or before October 1.
• There's a per-unit fee. Pay it on time and you can pass half of it through to the tenant, spread over twelve months. Pay it late and you eat the whole thing.
• You have to serve a copy of the registration certificate on your tenant.
• When you raise the rent, you record that increase in the City's online Residential Registry.
No certificate means no rent increase, no eviction, and no collecting rent. With October 1 a few days out, this is the one to act on now.
The four-unit line
Inglewood has two rulebooks, and the dividing line is four units.
| 4 units or fewer | 5 units or more | |
|---|---|---|
| Formula | 5% + CPI | 3% or CPI, whichever is greater |
| July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2027 | 8.8% | 3.8% |
| Hard cap | 10% | 10% |
| Increases per year | One | One |
Same city, maybe the same street, and it's 8.8% on one building and 3.8% on the one next door. If you're choosing between a fourplex and a fiveplex, that difference belongs in the math before you write an offer.
In both tiers you get one increase a year, not the two AB 1482 allows, with a 30-day notice. Units renting below 80% of Fair Market Rent can apply to the City for an extra 2% (4 or fewer units) or 5% (5 or more), still capped at 10%.
Where the state and the City overlap
Some Inglewood properties are also covered by AB 1482. For increases from August 1, 2026 through July 31, 2027, the state cap in LA County is 8.7%. On a small building where both apply, the stricter number may be the one that controls. My own caution is to go with 8.7%, and this is exactly the kind of thing to run past your attorney before you serve a notice.
Exempt from the cap is not exempt from everything
Under Costa-Hawkins, the state law, the City can't cap rents on:
• Single-family homes
• Condos
• Units first certified for occupancy after February 1, 1995
• New construction within the last 15 years
Deed-restricted affordable housing and an owner-occupied home renting just one unit are also outside the cap.
Here's the trap. Inglewood's just cause and relocation rules can still reach properties the rent cap doesn't touch, and AB 1482 may still apply too. Don't assume. Ask.
Just cause: you need a reason
To end a tenancy in Inglewood you need a reason the ordinance allows.
At fault: not paying rent, breaking the lease and not fixing it after a chance to cure, nuisance, refusing lawful access.
No fault: you or a close relative moving in, taking the unit off the market, demolition with permits, a government order.
One reason that's gone: substantial remodel. Inglewood took it off the list in 2021, even though state law still allows it.
Relocation: the number that changes the deal
Under AB 1482, a no-fault move-out costs one month's rent. In Inglewood it starts at three times the monthly rent, paid within 15 days of serving the notice. Then you add:
• $2,000 if minor children live in the unit
• A tenure amount: $2,000 (2 to 4 years), $3,000 (5 to 10 years), $5,000 (11 or more years), or $7,500 for a senior or disabled tenant
Say the rent is $2,500 and the tenant has been there six years. That's $7,500 plus $3,000, or $10,500. Under state law alone it would be $2,500.
If you're buying in Inglewood, that exposure belongs in your offer. Go down the rent roll and price it unit by unit. Use the City's current Relocation Calculation Sheet for exact figures.
Buyouts and harassment
Cash for keys is allowed, with rules:
• A written disclosure of the tenant's rights
• 30 days for the tenant to change their mind
• A payment at least equal to the relocation amount
• The agreement filed with the City within three days
Harassment is off the table: cutting services, ignoring repairs, entering without proper notice, any kind of pressure. Willful violations can bring tripled damages, punitive damages, attorney fees, and misdemeanor exposure.
Your Inglewood checklist
• Confirm the parcel is really in the City of Inglewood
• Register and pay fees by October 1 every year
• Serve the registration certificate on every tenant
• Know your tier: 4 and under, or 5 and up
• One increase a year, 30-day notice, log it with the City
• Before anyone moves out, price the relocation and call your attorney
I put all of this on a one-page handout. If you own in Inglewood and want a copy, call or email me and I'll send it over.
Next up
So, Inglewood. Just the state law? No. A lot more on top.
Tomorrow: the unincorporated areas of Los Angeles County.
This article and video are for general educational purposes only and are not legal, tax, or financial advice. Tony Self is a licensed California real estate broker (DRE #01906720) with Harcourts Hunter Mason Realty, not an attorney, and reading this does not create a client relationship. Local rules change and the City updates its amounts. Figures are current as of September 2026. Confirm current figures with the City of Inglewood Housing Protection Department and a California landlord-tenant attorney before raising rent, serving a notice, or offering a buyout.
Sources
• Inglewood Municipal Code, Chapter 8, Articles 9 and 10
• City of Inglewood, Allowable Rent Increases (7/1/2026 to 6/30/2027)
• City of Inglewood, Relocation Calculation Sheet
• AB 1482 bill text: https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billTextClient.xhtml?bill_id=201920200AB1482
Questions about how this affects your rental?
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