On April 23, 2024, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors enacted Chapter 8.53 of the Los Angeles County Code, establishing a new proactive rental housing inspection program in the unincorporated areas of Los Angeles County. The program aims to ensure that rental units comply with habitability requirements, help property owners maintain property values, and preserve the housing stock.
The new inspection program is called the Rental Housing Habitability Program (RHHP) and will be administered by the Department of Public Health's Environmental Health Division (DPH-EH).
RHHP will inspect each rental housing unit in the unincorporated areas of the County of Los Angeles once every four (4) years. For these routine inspections, RHHP will send a 30-day notice to the rental property owner (landlord). The notice will inform them that the rental housing property and ALL units will be inspected on a specific day or range of dates, depending on the number of rental units on the property. The landlord is required to post the notice of routine inspection in visible places on the property, so tenants are aware of the upcoming inspection date.
Under the RHHP, the landlord is required to provide each tenant 24 hour written notice reminding them of the upcoming scheduled routine inspection and the need for the inspector to enter their rental housing unit to complete the inspection.
In November 2024, RHHP prioritized inspection of rental properties with 5 or more units that have a history of repeated habitability violations and 2-4-unit rental properties that had 1 or more habitability violations during the previous two years.
No, the RHHP applies only to rental properties in the unincorporated areas of Los Angeles County.
To identify if your rental unit or property is located within a city or in the unincorporated areas of Los Angeles, please visit Los Angeles County Public Works Service Locator.
RHHP applies to all rental housing properties with 2 or more rental housing units and tenant-occupied single-family homes within the unincorporated areas of Los Angeles County. Additionally, it includes all rental housing properties registered in the County Rent Registry.
Yes. The RHHP does not apply to:
Yes. The County will collect an annual fee of $86 per rental unit from the property owner. This fee will be charged as part of the Assessor's Property Tax Statement. Starting July 2024, the landlord may recover 50% of this annual per unit fee from the tenant by collecting a monthly fee of $3.58.
Environmental Health Inspectors will also conduct an inspection after receiving a habitability complaint. The inspector will contact the tenant within three (3) days of the complaint, then schedule the inspection within seven (7) days.
The inspector will introduce themselves; provide proper identification and state the purpose of the visit. The inspector will then request permission to enter and if granted, conduct an inspection of the rental unit. Inspector will inspect the rental property for the following conditions:
Note: Tenant(s) will be asked questions about additional issues in the unit that need to be addressed (cockroaches, rats, leaking plumbing, clogged toilets, etc.)
The inspector will inform the tenant that the violations must be observed and verified directly by the inspector to include them on the Official Inspection Report (OIR).
An unavailable tenant may provide consent for the RHHP inspector to enter the Rental Unit to conduct an inspection or reinspection. If a tenant has questions or concerns, they may contact the RHHP office via phone, email, or walk-in. The tenant must complete the "Tenant Consent to Enter Unit for Housing Habitability Inspection" form. Completing the form gives the landlord or the tenant's representative, and inspector(s) consent to conduct an inspection in the Rental Unit.
All violations observed at the rental property and/or the rental unit(s) will be documented on an OIR. The landlord will have 21 days from the compliance date to correct the habitability violation(s). The inspector will conduct a reinspection within five (5) business days after the compliance date to verify that the required repairs and corrections have been made.
Yes, the landlord may be given an extension of up to 30 calendar days, if the DPH-EH inspector determines that there is significant progress being made to correct the violation(s) listed in the OIR.
The case will be referred to the County Housing Program Chief who will determine the next steps to obtain compliance, including the scheduling of an administrative hearing for the potential placement of the property into REAP.
Not all repairs require permits, but for those that do, the rental property owner must obtain the necessary permits from applicable regulatory agencies.
Third-party inspection reports are not accepted as evidence of violations nor compliance for any habitability violations.
You may contact DPH Environmental Health at 888-700-9995. A new phone number will be established specifically for the RHHP when the program is implemented, so please continue to check DPH EH's website.
Retaliation is prohibited against Tenants for exercising their rights under Los Angeles County Code Chapter 8.53 Rental Housing Habitability Program (RHHP). For general information on the rights and responsibilities of Tenants and Landlords in Los Angeles County, please contact the Los Angeles County Department of Consumer and Business Affairs (DCBA) by visiting rent.lacounty.gov.
For additional information on Tenant rights under RHHP, please contact DPH Environmental Health at 888-700-9995 or email DPH-RHHP@ph.lacounty.gov
Please email DPH Environmental Health Rental Housing Habitability Program at DPH-RHHP@ph.lacounty.gov.
Last Updated: 02/2025
