Residential tenancy: habitability: inspection and right to cure.

Assembly Member Lowenthal's residential tenancy proposal creates a voluntary inspection system for California landlords to verify their rental units meet habitability requirements before offering them to tenants. The measure adds Section 1941.8 to the Civil Code, establishing a framework for state and local housing agencies to conduct pre-rental inspections and document compliance with existing habitability standards.

Under the proposal, landlords who obtain a clean inspection report receive a presumption that their units satisfy habitability requirements for a yet-to-be-specified period. If tenants report maintenance issues during this timeframe, landlords have an undefined number of days to address the problems without being deemed in violation of habitability standards. Local agencies conducting these optional inspections may charge landlords fees to cover associated costs.

The bill requires inspections to be performed by state or local enforcement agencies already responsible for housing law compliance and tenant complaint response. While the measure creates additional inspection responsibilities for local agencies, it allows them to recover costs through inspection fees rather than requiring state reimbursement. The inspection reports must detail any violations found and specify required remedial actions.