Emeryville rent control 2026 Local RSO: Annual General Adjustment ≈ 1.8% (60% × ~3% SF-Oakland-Hayward CPI, April–April). Pre-1995 buildings with 3+ units. Post-1995 pre-2011 buildings: AB 1482 (~8%). Post-2011: exempt.

Emeryville’s 2026 AGA: the RSO formula

Under Emeryville Municipal Code §40-22.3, the Annual General Adjustment (AGA) for each calendar year is calculated as:

1. 60% of the percentage change in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) for the San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA Metropolitan Statistical Area, All Items, published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), for the 12-month period ending April 30 of the current year (or the most recently available 12-month period ending before May 1 of the current year).

For 2026, the SF-Oakland-Hayward MSA CPI-U for the period April 2024 through April 2025 is approximately 3.0%. The 2026 AGA calculation: 60% × 3.0% = 1.8%.

Two statutory guardrails modify the raw formula:

• Floor: 1% minimum AGA. If the 60% × CPI calculation produces a figure below 1%, the AGA is set at 1%. This protects landlords from effectively receiving zero increase in deflationary or very low-inflation periods.
• Ceiling: 5% per-notice maximum. No single rent increase notice under the Emeryville RSO may exceed 5%, even if banked prior-year AGA amounts are available. Banking is permitted (see below), but each notice is individually capped at 5%.

The 2026 AGA of approximately 1.8% is well above the 1% floor and well below the 5% ceiling, so the raw formula result governs.

CPI-window note: The SF-Oakland-Hayward MSA CPI series is also used by Oakland RAP (March-to-March window, producing ~1.7% for Oakland’s 2026 adjustment), Berkeley (July-to-June window, producing ~1.0%), and California AB 1482 (April-to-April, producing ~3.0% for the statewide cap). Emeryville shares AB 1482’s April-to-April window but applies a 60% multiplier, yielding a 2026 AGA of ~1.8% — higher than Oakland’s ~1.7% and Berkeley’s ~1.0%, but far below AB 1482’s statewide ~8% cap.

Emeryville’s three-tier building-cohort structure

Unlike single-framework cities (e.g., Santa Ana, where AB 1482 applies uniformly), Emeryville landlords and tenants must identify which of three legal frameworks governs a specific unit based on the building’s year of first occupancy:

Tier 1: RSO-covered (pre-February 1, 1995 first CoC)

Buildings with three or more residential units that received their first certificate of occupancy before February 1, 1995 are governed by the Emeryville RSO (EMC Chapter 40-22).

• Rent cap: AGA ≈ 1.8% for 2026
• Banking: unused AGA may accumulate; capped at 5% per notice
• Just-cause eviction: Emeryville RSO just-cause provisions apply (separate from AB 1482 §1946.2)
• Petition process: Rent Adjustment Program (city staff administers)
• Enforcement: local administrative + civil remedies

The pre-1995 building cohort in Emeryville includes older apartment complexes along San Pablo Avenue, Christie Avenue, and the South Emeryville residential areas built before the city’s mid-1990s commercial development acceleration.

Tier 2: AB 1482-only (first CoC between February 1, 1995 and approximately 2011)

Buildings where the first CoC was issued on or after February 1, 1995 but before approximately 2011 are exempt from the Emeryville RSO under Costa-Hawkins (§1954.52(a)(1)) but governed by California’s statewide AB 1482 (Cal. Civ. Code §1947.12) at a cap of approximately 8% for 2026 (5% + ~3% LA/SF MSA CPI).

• Rent cap: ~8% for 2026 under AB 1482
• Just-cause eviction: AB 1482 §1946.2 only (no local RSO just-cause)
• Enforcement: civil court only; no Emeryville administrative track

This intermediate cohort represents a significant portion of Emeryville’s residential rental stock — particularly apartments and live-work lofts built during the late 1990s and early 2000s development boom that transformed the formerly industrial land between the Bay Bridge approach and the Berkeley border. These buildings have materially weaker tenant protections (a 5.3pp cap gap) than the pre-1995 RSO cohort.

Tier 3: Exempt (first CoC in or after approximately 2011)

Buildings that received their first CoC in or after approximately 2011 are exempt from AB 1482 under the 15-year rolling new-construction exemption (Cal. Civ. Code §1947.12(d)(4)(A)). The exemption window is rolling: a building completed in 2013 becomes AB-1482-covered in 2028 when the 15-year window passes.

• Rent cap: none (no RSO, no AB 1482 cap)
• Just-cause eviction: none under AB 1482 (building exempt); no local RSO just-cause

Emeryville has seen substantial new multi-family residential construction since 2011, particularly in the Sherwin-Williams site redevelopment, the Bay Street mixed-use district, and the EmeryStation developments near the Amtrak/Capitol Corridor station. These newer buildings are entirely unregulated for rent-increase purposes.

Detailed coverage and exemptions under the Emeryville RSO

The Emeryville RSO (EMC §40-22.2 et seq.) covers residential rental units subject to the pre-1995 first-CoC threshold AND the 3+-unit building requirement. Explicit exemptions include:

• Single-family homes (SFRs). Detached single-family rental homes are exempt from the Emeryville RSO regardless of age. They may be subject to AB 1482 (if pre-2011 and no HHBO notice) or entirely exempt (if HHBO notice was given at commencement of tenancy per Cal. Civ. Code §1947.12(d)(5)(B)).
• Condominiums sold separately to individual owners. Condominiums where each unit is separately owned are exempt from the Emeryville RSO if the unit was sold individually (consistent with Costa-Hawkins §1954.52(a)(3) for condos sold separately after June 30, 1977). Condo units in rental use may be subject to AB 1482 absent a valid HHBO notice.
• Owner-occupied duplexes. A two-unit building where the owner occupies one unit as their primary residence is exempt from the RSO (and from AB 1482’s cap, per §1947.12(d)(6)).
• Newly constructed buildings (post-February 1, 1995 first CoC). The RSO’s pre-1995 threshold is a fixed statutory cutoff. Buildings completed after February 1, 1995 are perpetually exempt from the Emeryville RSO regardless of how old they eventually become — unlike AB 1482’s rolling 15-year window, the RSO cutoff does not shift.
• Deed-restricted affordable housing. Units regulated by a recorded affordability covenant (LIHTC, Section 8 Project-Based, BMR, RAD, or other federal or state affordability programs) are exempt from the Emeryville RSO, as these units are subject to HUD or TCAC rent rules that govern separately from local ordinances.
• Hotels, motels, and short-term accommodations under 30 days. Transient occupancy is not a residential tenancy subject to the RSO.
• Government-owned housing. Units owned by a government entity are exempt from the RSO.

Banking and above-AGA increases

Banking: The Emeryville RSO permits landlords to bank unused AGA amounts from prior years. If a landlord voluntarily forgoes the full AGA in a given year (for example, by implementing only a 1% increase in a year when the AGA is 1.8%), the unused 0.8% accumulates in a running bank. In a later year, the landlord may apply the banked amount in a single notice, subject to the 5% per-notice maximum. The banking provision allows landlords to smooth out increases over time — for example, skipping increases for two years and then applying a consolidated increase (not to exceed 5%) in year three.

Above-AGA landlord petitions: A landlord who can demonstrate that their operating costs or capital improvement expenditures exceed the AGA may petition the Rent Adjustment Program for an above-AGA rent increase. The petition process requires documentation of the capital improvement or cost increase, notice to the affected tenant(s), and a hearing before a city hearing officer. Approved above-AGA increases are typically amortized over the useful life of the capital improvement. Tenants may participate in the hearing and contest the landlord’s cost justification.

Tenant petitions for below-AGA reductions: Conversely, a tenant in an RSO-covered unit who alleges that the landlord has allowed habitability conditions to deteriorate substantially may petition for a rent reduction below the current lawful rent. This is the tenant-side equivalent of the landlord’s above-AGA petition.

East Bay RSO comparison: Emeryville vs. Oakland vs. Berkeley

The three cities that form the Alameda County RSO corridor — Berkeley, Emeryville, and Oakland — each use the SF-Oakland-Hayward MSA CPI as their anchor but apply different multipliers and measurement windows, producing a range of 2026 caps:

• Berkeley Rent Stabilization Program (BMC §13.76): ~1.0% for 2026. Formula: 65% × CPI (July 2023 – June 2024 window). Unlimited banking (no per-notice ceiling). 9-member elected Rent Stabilization Board. Voter-initiated charter amendment — Council cannot amend without voter vote. Just-cause: Berkeley RSO own provisions.
• Emeryville RSO (EMC Chapter 40-22): ~1.8% for 2026. Formula: 60% × CPI (April–April window). 5% per-notice banking ceiling. City-staff Rent Adjustment Program. Council-enacted ordinance — can be amended by Council without a voter vote. Just-cause: RSO own provisions.
• Oakland Rent Adjustment Program (Oakland Municipal Code §8.22.010 et seq.): ~1.7% for 2026. Formula: 100% × CPI (March–March window). Banking: capped per-notice. Elected Rent Adjustment Board (7 members). Voter-initiated measure — Oakland voters passed RSO in 1980 and amendments by subsequent vote. Just-cause: Oakland Just Cause for Eviction Ordinance (separate from RAP).

The counterintuitive result: Emeryville’s 60% multiplier produces a 2026 AGA (~1.8%) slightly above Oakland’s 100% formula result (~1.7%) because Emeryville uses the April-to-April CPI window (which captured a higher ~3.0% CPI reading) while Oakland uses the March-to-March window (which captured a lower ~1.7% CPI reading). The multiplier percentage is not the only driver of the result — the CPI measurement window is equally important.

For landlords with properties in multiple East Bay cities: the three RSO frameworks are legally independent, each administered by its own program, with different petition processes, different banking rules, and different just-cause protections. There is no unified East Bay rent board; each city’s program operates separately.

Just-cause eviction in Emeryville

The Emeryville RSO includes just-cause eviction protections for tenants in RSO-covered units (pre-1995, 3+ unit buildings). Just cause is required before a landlord may terminate tenancy for covered units. The enumerated just causes under the Emeryville RSO include:

1. Non-payment of rent
2. Nuisance, damage to the unit, or substantial interference with other tenants
3. Illegal use of the rental unit
4. Material breach of a lease or rental agreement term not cured after written notice
5. Refusal to execute a new rental agreement on similar terms at expiration
6. Refusal to permit lawful access by the landlord after proper notice
7. Owner or qualifying family member move-in (with advance notice and applicable relocation assistance requirements)
8. Withdrawal of the unit from the rental market under the Ellis Act
9. Substantial rehabilitation requiring the unit to be vacated
10. Demolition of the building

For AB 1482-only units (1995–2011 buildings in Emeryville), just-cause eviction is governed by AB 1482 §1946.2 alone — the Emeryville RSO just-cause provisions do not extend to this cohort. The AB 1482 enumerated just causes are largely parallel (11 causes including non-payment, breach, nuisance, OMI, Ellis, substantial rehab, demolition) but the enforcement track differs: RSO just-cause violations can be raised with the Rent Adjustment Program, while AB 1482 §1946.2 violations are civil-court only.

Notice requirements for Emeryville rent increases

For RSO-covered units (pre-1995, 3+ units):

• AGA increase (≤ 5%): At least 30 calendar days’ written notice under Cal. Civ. Code §827(b)(2)(A), as the 2026 AGA of ~1.8% (and the maximum banked-AGA notice of 5%) falls below the 10% threshold triggering the 90-day rule. Add 5 days for mail service under Cal. Code Civ. Proc. §1013.
• Notice content: Must state the new monthly rent, the effective date, the AGA percentage being applied, and the year(s) to which any banked AGA amounts correspond. The RSO requires the notice to be in writing; oral notice is ineffective.
• Language access: Emeryville has a significant multilingual tenant population. While the RSO does not mandate translated notices, landlords are advised to provide key information in tenants’ primary languages to avoid disputes.

For AB 1482-covered units (1995–2011 buildings): Cal. Civ. Code §827(b) applies identically. The AB 1482 cap of ~8% is below 10%, so the 30-day rule applies. Landlords must also provide the §1947.13 tenant-rights disclosure for multi-unit AB 1482-covered buildings.

Emeryville’s rental market context

Emeryville’s unusual position — a tiny city (<14,000 residents) with a massive commercial employment base (Pixar Animation Studios, multiple biotech and tech companies in the East Bay Science Corridor, the Bay Street regional shopping mall) — creates an atypical rental market dynamic. The city has roughly two to three times as many workers commuting in daily as it has residents, generating upward rent pressure from workers employed locally who prefer to live near work. The RSO was enacted in 2015 specifically to protect long-term residential tenants — primarily in older apartments along San Pablo and the south Emeryville residential neighborhood — from rent spikes as the surrounding commercial development increased property values.

Emeryville’s rental stock is small in absolute terms (<4,000 total residential units estimated) but highly heterogeneous: older pre-1995 apartments in the RSO tier, live-work lofts and post-dot-com condos in the 1995–2011 AB 1482 tier, and brand-new residential towers in the post-2011 exempt tier — all within approximately 2 square miles. Landlords in Emeryville must correctly identify which tier applies to each building before serving any rent increase notice.

The city’s proximity to Berkeley (northern border), Oakland (south and east), and the I-80/I-580 interchange (major Bay Area transit hub at MacArthur BART) means Emeryville tenants also routinely compare their situation with adjacent-city protections. A tenant in a pre-1995 Emeryville apartment (~1.8% cap) lives potentially one block from an Emeryville post-2011 apartment (no cap) or a Berkeley apartment (~1.0% cap) or an Oakland apartment (~1.7% cap) — a wide range of outcomes within a very small geographic area.

Penalties and enforcement

RSO violations (Tier 1 units): A landlord who collects rent above the Emeryville RSO AGA (without Rent Adjustment Program approval for an above-AGA increase) is subject to:

• Tenant petition to the Rent Adjustment Program ordering repayment of all unlawfully-collected rent above the AGA
• Prospective rent rollback to the lawful AGA-compliant level
• Administrative penalties under the RSO’s enforcement provisions (as amended; amounts set by ordinance)
• Civil action in Alameda County Superior Court for damages and attorney fees where the RSO does not provide an exclusive administrative remedy

AB 1482 violations (Tier 2 units): Cal. Civ. Code §1947.12(h) provides:

• Rent reduction to the lawful AB 1482 rate
• Refund of unlawfully-collected rent with 10%/year interest (§3289(b))
• Treble damages for willful violations, minimum $250 per violation (§1947.12(h)(3))
• Attorney fees to a prevailing tenant (§1947.12(i))

Civil claims under AB 1482 for Emeryville violations are filed in Alameda County Superior Court (René C. Davidson Courthouse in Oakland). The three-year limitations period applies under Cal. Code Civ. Proc. §338. An over-cap rent increase notice is an affirmative defense in an unlawful detainer proceeding for non-payment of the unlawful portion.

Frequently asked questions