California

One-month security limit

Cal. Civ. Code § 1950.5(c)(1)State law

Except for the stated statutory exceptions, a landlord may not demand or receive security exceeding one month’s rent, in addition to first month’s rent paid on or before initial occupancy.

Answers the question “How much deposit can they ask?”

The source

… defaults by the tenant in any obligation under the rental agreement to restore, replace, or return personal property or appurtenances, exclusive of ordinary wear and tear, if the security deposit is authorized to be applied thereto by the rental agreement. (c) (1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), (3), or (5), a landlord shall not demand or receive security, however denominated, in an amount or value in excess of an amount equal to one month’s rent, in addition to any rent for the first month paid on or before initial occupancy. (2) This subdivision does not prohibit an advance payment of not less than six months’ rent if the term of the lease is six months or longer. (3) This subdivision does not preclude a landlord and a tenant from entering into a mutual…

Official law: Open the official source
Document: D025, retrieved Oct 1, 2026
Dates: In force since Jul 1, 2024
Status on Oct 1, 2026: In force

What it depends on

Covers: Conditions not extracted yet.
Key value: One month’s rent, in addition to any rent for the first month paid on or before initial occupancy.
Exemptions: The exceptions in paragraphs (2), (3), and (5) apply; this subdivision does not apply to security collected or demanded before July 1, 2024. The two-month limit in paragraph (5) does not apply if the prospective tenant is a service member.
What you can do next: Read the law at its official source

Audit trail

The model reads the law; code decides who it covers. The line between them stays visible.

Extracted by the model

What the model read from the source text, checked by code (the quote must appear word for word).

Category: Deposits
Requirement: Except for the stated statutory exceptions, a landlord may not demand or receive security exceeding one month’s rent, in addition to first month’s rent paid on or before initial occupancy.
Key value: One month’s rent, in addition to any rent for the first month paid on or before initial occupancy.
Effect: protection_or_duty
Quote found in source: yes
Confidence: 90%

reasoning boundary

Decided by code

Deterministic: same rules, facts and date give the same answer.

Jurisdiction: listed only for addresses whose state or legal city is CA.
Dates: in force from 2024-07-01; before that, not yet in force.
Coverage: no building condition the data can test; conditions in words stay with the text.

As of Oct 1, 2026Engine run

Sources retrieved Oct 1, 2026.

Which buildings it reaches

All 250 sample addresses in California on Oct 1, 2026.

250 applies

San Francisco and Berkeley

Los Angeles

San Diego

Every dot is the rule engine’s result for that address. The larger dots are the example addresses listed below. 2 addresses have no coordinates and are counted but not drawn.

Decided by code for the example addresses

On Oct 1, 2026. Rules that don’t apply are left out.

3515 Fillmore St, San Francisco: Applies. Statewide California rule in force since July 1, 2024 (Cal. Civ. Code § 1950.5(c)(1)); no building condition in it excludes this address, but the amount is not settled. Which amount applies depends on who owns the building (not in the data) and a condition in the text we can't check from the data. Check who owns the building, a person or a company (county recorder, or the owner named on the lease).
145 Taylor St, San Francisco: Applies. Statewide California rule in force since July 1, 2024 (Cal. Civ. Code § 1950.5(c)(1)); no building condition in it excludes this address, but the amount is not settled. Which amount applies depends on who owns the building (not in the data) and a condition in the text we can't check from the data. Check who owns the building, a person or a company (county recorder, or the owner named on the lease).
140 Portola Dr, San Francisco: Applies. Statewide California rule in force since July 1, 2024 (Cal. Civ. Code § 1950.5(c)(1)); no building condition in it excludes this address, but the amount is not settled. Which amount applies depends on who owns the building (not in the data) and a condition in the text we can't check from the data. Check who owns the building, a person or a company (county recorder, or the owner named on the lease).
10635 Sherman Grove Ave, Los Angeles: Applies. Statewide California rule in force since July 1, 2024 (Cal. Civ. Code § 1950.5(c)(1)); no building condition in it excludes this address, but the amount is not settled. Which amount applies depends on who owns the building (not in the data) and a condition in the text we can't check from the data. Check who owns the building, a person or a company (county recorder, or the owner named on the lease).
1609 Addison St, Berkeley: Applies. Statewide California rule in force since July 1, 2024 (Cal. Civ. Code § 1950.5(c)(1)); no building condition in it excludes this address, but the amount is not settled. Which amount applies depends on who owns the building (not in the data) and a condition in the text we can't check from the data. Check who owns the building, a person or a company (county recorder, or the owner named on the lease).