Give notice of a rent increase in writing, with the new dollar amount and the date it takes effect, using the longer of the notice in the lease and the notice in the statute. Do not change the recurring charge until that date. In California, a call, a text, or an email is not the notice.

Rows of numbered apartment mailboxes in a stainless-steel bank.
A rent-increase notice has to be in writing and delivered by a method the statute allows.Image: Mk2010 · CC BY-SA 4.0

Rent-increase rules differ by state and city. A local cap can be stricter than the state notice period. Read the current text before you send the letter.

When are you allowed to raise the rent?

On a fixed-term lease, do not send a mid-term increase unless the lease itself says the rent can change during the term. In Oregon, ORS 90.220 says the terms of a fixed-term tenancy, including the amount of rent, may not be unilaterally amended. The new number belongs in a renewal offer, or in a written amendment the tenant actually signs.

On a month-to-month tenancy, state law usually lets you change the rent after written notice. The notice clock and the cap are different tests. A letter can be early and still be too large. In California, the Attorney General's rent-cap page describes Civil Code section 1947.12 as capping many increases at 5 percent plus the change in the cost of living, up to a maximum of 10 percent, over 12 months. The percentage depends on where the unit sits and when the increase takes effect. In Oregon, ORS 90.323 points to a maximum calculated under ORS 90.324, which the state publishes for each year. Look up that year's figure. This article does not state it.

Get the owner's yes on the dollar amount before the tenant sees it.

How much notice does California require?

For a residential tenancy from week to week, month to month, or another period shorter than a month, Civil Code section 827 requires written notice. The Attorney General's tenant page states the same rule in plain language: if the increase is 10 percent or less, give at least 30 days; if it is more than 10 percent, give at least 90 days. A call, text, or email is not enough.

Section 827 measures that percentage against the rent charged to that tenant at any time during the 12 months before the effective date, and it combines other increases in those 12 months. Deliver the notice in person, or mail it under Code of Civil Procedure section 1013. Section 1013 adds time based on where you mail the notice. This article does not state that extra number of days. Read section 1013 and add whatever time it currently requires, or serve the notice in person and write the date and method on your copy.

One exception in section 827: if the increase is caused by a change in the tenant's income or family composition from a recertification required by statute or regulation, the notice period is at least 30 days even when the percentage is higher.

What do Oregon and Texas require?

In Oregon, for a tenancy other than week to week, ORS 90.323 says the landlord may not increase the rent during the first year after the tenancy begins. After that year, the landlord must give written notice at least 90 days before the increase takes effect, and may not increase the rent more than once in any 12-month period. A week-to-week tenancy needs at least seven days' written notice. The notice must state the amount of the increase, the amount of the new rent, the effective date, and the facts supporting an exemption if the increase is above the published maximum. Exemptions in the statute include a first certificate of occupancy issued less than 15 years before the notice, and certain affordable housing. Do not assume a building is exempt because it looks new.

Texas Property Code section 91.001 does not set a 10 percent test or a 30-day or 90-day rent-increase clock. It is a termination statute. A month-to-month tenancy may be ended by notice from either side. If the rent-paying period is at least one month, the tenancy ends on the later of the day stated in the notice or one month after the day the notice is given, unless a signed instrument sets a different notice period or says no notice is required. If a Texas tenant will not accept the new rent, read the lease and section 91.001 before you treat the tenancy as ended. Do not borrow California's 30-day or 90-day numbers for a Texas unit.

What does the worked example look like for unit 4B?

Unit 4B is a California month-to-month tenancy. Rent has been $1,800 for the entire 12 months before February 1, 2027, with no other increase. The owner approves $1,980. The increase is $180, which is 10 percent of $1,800. Ten percent or less takes at least 30 days under section 827, not 90. February 1, 2027 is 30 days after January 2, 2027. Personal service on January 2 meets that count. If the rent was lower than $1,800 at any point in those 12 months, recompute before you rely on 30 days. Also check the local cap and section 1947.12 before you decide $1,980 is lawful. A timely notice can still be too large.

If you will mail the California notice, do not use January 2 as the mail date. Section 1013 adds time, and this article does not guess how many days. Serve in person, or mail early enough that the added time still leaves February 1 at or after the statutory date.

Jurisdiction Tenancy in the example Rule you can verify Last personal-service day for a Feb 1, 2027 change
California Month to month, rent $1,800 all prior year, new rent $1,980 30 days, because the increase is 10 percent and not more, under Civ. Code 827 Jan 2, 2027
California, alternate Same unit, new rent $1,998 90 days, because $198 is more than 10 percent of $1,800 Nov 3, 2026
Oregon Month to month after year one, any allowed increase At least 90 days under ORS 90.323, and no more than one increase in 12 months Nov 3, 2026
Texas Month to month, tenant rejects the new rent Section 91.001 is a termination notice of one month if rent is paid monthly, not a 10 percent rent-increase test Count one month from the notice, or the period in a signed agreement

November 3, 2026 is 90 days before February 1, 2027. That date is the edge for the Oregon notice and for a California increase greater than 10 percent, if you serve in person. Put an office deadline a week earlier so a missed day does not blow the statute.

The letter can read: "Monthly rent for unit 4B will change from $1,800 to $1,980 on February 1, 2027. The increase is $180. Other recurring charges stay as they are. This notice does not end your tenancy." Keep a copy with the date and the method of delivery.

What do you change on the rent roll, and when?

Leave January's charge at $1,800. The new figure belongs on the February charge, not on the day you draft the letter. On January 28, 2027, open the rent roll. If February still shows $1,800, correct it before the charge posts. If January already shows $1,980, put January back. The tenant owes the amount the notice and the lease allow on that date, not the amount that happens to be sitting in the software.

Write the service date on the lease file the day you deliver the notice. A row that says "sent" with no date and no method is not a record.

In Tivio, a renewal can set the new rent from its effective date, so the old rent keeps posting until then.