State Housing Law: apartment houses.

2025-2026 Regular Session Introduced by David Alvarez

Prohibits requiring a manager or caretaker to reside on the premises for apartment houses, removing the long-standing live-in requirement.

Referred to Com. on H. & C.D.

#statehousinglaw #apartmenthouses

1) Purpose and intent

AB 1771, introduced by Assembly Member Alvarez, seeks to modify the State Housing Law by changing occupancy requirements for apartment houses.

The bill would prohibit state or local entities from requiring a manager or other caretaker to reside on the premises of an apartment house.

It also directs the Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) to update its regulations to reflect this change.

The bill states that the change addresses a statewide concern and applies to all cities, including charter cities.

2) Key provisions and changes

New statute added: California Health and Safety Code, Section 17921.2.

Subsection (a): “A state or local entity shall not require a manager or other caretaker to reside upon the premises of an apartment house.”
Subsection (b): “The department shall update its regulations as may be necessary to comply with this section.”
Subsection (c): Legislative finding that the section addresses a matter of statewide concern and applies to all cities, including charter cities.

The existing framework: Under the State Housing Law, a manager or responsible person is traditionally required to reside on the premises for apartment houses with a specified number of units (e.g., 16 or more in certain contexts). AB 1771 would remove that residency requirement for apartment buildings going forward.

Regulatory update: HCD is directed to revise its regulations to ensure consistency with the new limitation on residency requirements.

3) Who and what is affected

Affected entities: State and local governments that regulate housing, as well as apartment house operators and property managers.

Affected buildings: Apartment houses (specifically those that would have otherwise been subject to residency requirements for a manager or caretaker under existing law).

Affected regulatory functions: The Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD), which would update rules/regulations to align with the residency prohibition.

4) Procedural and timeline aspects

Legislative status (as of the bill’s introduction):

Referred to the Assembly Committee on Housing and Community Development on February 23, 2026.
History indicates: Read first time and print on February 9, 2026; referred to committee on February 23, 2026; potential consideration and vote in committee and on the floor would follow per standard process.

Fiscal considerations: The bill notes “Fiscal Committee: YES,” indicating a review of potential budget or cost implications, though no specific appropriations are stated in the text.

Effective date: The bill text does not specify an immediate effective date; typically, if enacted, regulations would need to be updated by HCD, suggesting a phased or later implementation after regulatory updates.

5) Notes and context

This change shifts away from a long-standing practice of requiring live-in managers for certain apartment buildings, potentially affecting property management structures, on-site staffing models, and compliance practices for multi-unit housing.

The bill emphasizes a statewide, not municipal, concern, ensuring uniform applicability across California, including charter cities.

If you’d like, I can compare AB 1771 to current Health and Safety Code provisions on residency requirements for managers to highlight exactly where the changes would sit within the existing framework.

Bill