After years of ignored complaints, deferred maintenance, and several emergency events, you’ve had enough of your landlord’s failure to repair your dilapidated rental home. You’ve made more complaints – oral and written – than you can count, you’ve reported them to the government and obtained notices of violation from your local code enforcement agency, and you’ve attempted to mediate the matter, possibly even through your local Rent Board. But, these efforts proved fruitless. Your home remains plagued by actionable habitability defects that render it uninhabitable to the point it endangers your health, safety, and body.  You’ve previously thought about suing your landlord, and now want to take the plunge and commence a civil action in court.  You begin to wonder: How much time do I have to bring a habitability claim in California?

To have a good chance of obtaining a successful result in court, you must first file your claim timely.  A statute of limitations is defined as, “a statute establishing a time limit for suing in…civil case[s]…based on the date when the claim accrued.”  Black’s Law Dictionary 1450-51 (8th ed. 2004).  Understanding and meeting this deadline is essential, as even a meritorious claim may be barred – rejected as untimely filed – if filed too late.

The statute of limitations for a breach of the warranty of habitability claim in California are simple.  They are based on whether your lease with your landlord is oral or written, and also whether you still reside in your uninhabitable home.  If you still reside in your home and want to assert a breach of the warranty of habitability claim, you may file your claim in court at any time, and recover damages for habitability defects that have occurred within the following temporal limits:

  • If you have a written lease: 4 years. California Code of Civil Procedure § 337(1); and,
  • If you have an oral lease: 2 years. California Code of Civil Procedure § 339(1).

If you have vacated the dilapidated unit, generally, you must file your lawsuit within two (2) years of vacating if you have an oral lease, and within four (4) years if you have a written lease.  California Code of Civil Procedure §§ 337(1), 339(1).  And, again, generally, you can only recover damages for habitability defects that have occurred within the last two (2) or four (4) years of the filing date.  Acting promptly can therefore help preserve your claim and avoid losing the opportunity to recover damages that may become time barred.

Repeated complaints and broken promises should not define your experience at home. When substantial habitability defects persist and requests for repairs go unanswered, pursuing a habitability claim may be an important step toward holding those responsible accountable and seeking compensation for the harm you have suffered. Your complaints, photographs, inspection reports, and records of losses can help tell that story, and help you as you litigate your timely filed breach of the implied warranty of habitabitly claim (not making repairs) in a court of law.