Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in California

I have a house with three male tenants sharing the house. They signed a rental agreement and they are jointly and serverly responsible for the rent, but each sends me a check for 1/3. The rental agreement doesn't allow pets. I have been informed that one of the tenants has his girlfriend staying there with a dog. When I asked him about it he said it is a service dog due to her anxiety. Can he move her in with the dog when she is not on the agreement? This is causing a problem with the other tenants. Can I require that she be added to the agreement and pay a security deposit like the other tenants?


Asked on 9/14/16, 12:27 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys

Check your lease. If its even half-decent it says that only tenants and listed residents are allowed to live there. So you are entirely within your rights to require her to qualify as a tenant and pay a security deposit if she is going to live there. Or you can just refuse to allow her to live there, and have her removed by unlawful detainer if she doesn't leave.

As for the dog, if it says no pets, even a tenant can't just suddenly bring in a service dog. A non-tenant certainly can't. A tenant must request a "reasonable accommodation" and provide confirmation from a licensed health care provider that either a trained service animal, or emotional support animal is necessary to the tenant. False representation that an animal is a trained service animal or that a person has been prescribed a service or emotional support animal is a misdemeanor punishable by upt to $1,000 fine and up to six months in county jail.

If she does have proof she was told by a licensed professional that she needs the dog, however, and you accept her as a tenant, you cannot ask for any extra security deposit for the dog, even if you could ask for an extra deposit for a regular pet dog. You can only require the same deposit as any other tenant.

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Answered on 9/14/16, 2:38 pm


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