Notices in Santa Ana: the local rules

Each rule below links to the section of the Santa Ana Municipal Code it was read from, with the code text one click away (checked October 2026). General information, not legal advice.

What Santa Ana's code says

Santa Ana code What Santa Ana's code adds
Filing a copy with the city	Yes, a copy of the termination notice and proof of service, through the city's Rental Registry portal, within 5 days. Applies: Written termination notices; the 5 days run from service on the tenant. § 8-3121 · code text The Owner has submitted to the City, within five (5) days after service of the notice of termination on the Tenant, a true and accurate copy of the Owner's written notice of termination, and proof of such service, signed under penalty of perjury, on the Tenant, through the City's Rental Registry portal. Yes, every required landlord notice, including rent increase and eviction notices, goes to the city through the Rental Registry portal. Applies: Any notice or document a landlord must give a tenant under this law or any other federal, state or local law. § 8-3149 · code text Any notices or documents required to be provided from a Landlord to a Tenant by this Article or any other federal, state, or local law, including, but not limited to, notice of Rent Increase and notice of eviction, shall be provided to the City through the Rental Registry portal.
What a notice must say	That the owner will end the tenancy, and at least 1 at-fault or no-fault just cause reason. Applies: Any notice ending a tenancy, at-fault or no-fault. § 8-3121 · code text The Owner must serve a written notice in accordance with Civil Code sections 1946 through 1946.5, to the Tenant that states that, in addition to any information required by federal or State law, the Owner will terminate the Tenancy, and that indicates at least one at-fault or no-fault just cause reason as provided in section 8-3120(b); On the city's form: that rent stabilization exists and the tenant may respond to Fair Return or Capital Improvement Petitions. Applies: By move-in and in every rent increase notice; no increase takes effect without it; petition part optional only under an approved Fair Return Petition. § 8-3149 · code text The existence and scope of this Division 3 of Article XIX of Chapter 8 of the Santa Ana Municipal Code; and In the language the owner and tenant used to negotiate the tenancy, plus English. Applies: Notices ending a tenancy. § 8-3121 · code text The Owner must provide the notice in the language that the Owner and Tenant used to negotiate the terms of the Tenancy, in addition to English. In the language the owner and tenant used to negotiate the tenancy, plus English. Applies: Rent stabilization notices. § 8-3149 · code text The Owner must give notices to the Tenant in the language that the Owner and Tenant used to negotiate the terms of the Tenancy (e.g., English, Spanish, Chinese, Tagalog, Vietnamese, and Korean) as well as English.

The California rule underneath

Where Santa Ana's rule above does not cover a situation, state law still applies.

CA state law The statewide rule underneath
Notice of a rent increase	At least 30 days' notice for an increase of 10% or less; at least 90 days for an increase of more than 10% Applies: The 10% is measured against the rent charged at any time in the 12 months before the increase, counting all increases in that period together. Civ. Code § 827(b)(2), (b)(3)(A)
Notice to end a month-to-month tenancy (landlord)	60 days' notice; 30 days if the tenant has lived there less than one year Applies: Where the unit is covered by just cause (Civ. Code § 1946.2) or a local ordinance, the notice must also state a qualifying cause. Civ. Code § 1946.1(b), (c)
Notice to end a month-to-month tenancy (tenant)	At least as long as the rental period (one month for a month-to-month tenancy) Civ. Code § 1946.1(b)
30-day notice when the unit is sold to an owner-occupant	30 days' notice when a separately sellable unit is in escrow to a natural person who will live there for at least a year Applies: Notice within 120 days of opening escrow, given once, and all § 1946.1(d) conditions met. Civ. Code § 1946.1(d)
Notice to pay rent or quit	3 days, not counting Saturdays, Sundays and judicial holidays, stating the amount due and how to pay Applies: May be served any time within one year after the rent became due. Code Civ. Proc. § 1161(2)
Notice to cure a lease violation or quit	3 days, not counting Saturdays, Sundays and judicial holidays, to perform the broken lease term or leave Code Civ. Proc. § 1161(3)
No fee for serving notices	A landlord may not charge the tenant a fee for serving or posting a notice Civ. Code § 1946.1(i)

Who this affects

TenantsLandlordsProperty managers

Frequently asked questions

How much notice does a Santa Ana landlord have to give?

Under Santa Ana's rule, landlords file each termination notice and proof of service through the Rental Registry portal within 5 days. Santa Ana termination notices must state at least 1 just cause, in the language used to negotiate the tenancy plus English.

General information, not legal advice.

Notices in Santa Ana

Key points

What Santa Ana's code says

The California rule underneath

Who this affects

Frequently asked questions

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