Short answer
You can hire a manager in the middle of a lease. The tenant's lease stays in force on the same terms. Within 15 days the tenant should get written notice of the manager's name, phone and service address and how to pay rent. The deposit moves to the manager's trust account, the state rent cap applies only if the home is covered, and missing move-in records cannot be recreated later.
The lease stays; the contact person changes
Maybe you have managed your Auburn rental yourself for a few years. The tenant pays, mostly on time, but the calls, the paperwork and the drive are wearing thin. You do not need to wait for a vacancy to hire help.
Hiring a manager does not end or rewrite the lease. You are still the landlord, and the tenant keeps every right the lease and California law give them. The manager steps in as your agent. Rent amount, due date, term and house rules stay the same until they change in the normal, lawful way.
What does change is who the tenant calls, where rent goes and who holds the paperwork. Each of those has a rule attached. SPMG's services page lists the pieces a full-service manager usually takes over: rent collection, maintenance, lease paperwork and monthly reporting.
The notice your tenant must receive
California requires every lease to name the person authorized to manage the home and the owner or agent who accepts legal notices, with a name, phone number and usual street address for each, plus who receives rent and in what form (Civil Code 1962(a)). When a new manager takes over, that information has to be updated.
Under Civil Code 1962(c), a successor owner or manager must comply within 15 days of taking over. The penalty for skipping it is real: a successor manager may not serve a three-day notice to pay rent or quit, or evict, for rent that came due while the disclosure was missing. The tenant still owes the rent; you just lose the fast remedy for that period.
If the manager moves the tenant to an online portal, keep one more rule in mind. Civil Code 1947.3 requires a landlord or agent to accept at least one form of payment that is neither cash nor an electronic funds transfer, and bars a fee for paying by check. A portal can be the easy option, not the only one.
| If this is your situation | What usually fits | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| You signed a written lease with your own name and address | A written change-of-manager notice within 15 days | Rent payee, payment forms and the service address for notices |
| You hold the deposit in your own account | Transfer the full amount to the manager's trust account | Proof of the amount collected and the date |
| Tenant moved in on or after July 1, 2025 | Give the manager your move-in photos | Photos taken immediately before or at the start of the tenancy |
| Tenant moved in before July 1, 2025 | Hand over whatever records exist, then add dated photos now | That nothing is back-dated |
| You never gave the exemption notice | Treat the home as covered by the rent cap | The Placer cap for the date the increase starts |
Moving the deposit and the money trail
The security deposit you collected is held for the tenant, and the tenant's claim to it comes before any of your creditors (Civil Code 1950.5(d)). If the manager will handle the move-out refund, transfer the full deposit amount along with proof of what was collected and when.
Once a broker receives it, the deposit is trust money. Under B&P 10145 and the DRE regulations, it must be placed in the broker's trust account (or with you or a neutral escrow) within three business days. Hand over the rent ledger as well, so the manager starts with an accurate balance and knows whether the tenant pays electronically. That detail matters at move-out: since January 1, 2026, if rent or the deposit was paid electronically, the remaining deposit generally has to be returned electronically unless you and the tenant agreed in writing to another method.
Keep a copy of everything you hand over. If a dispute comes up after move-out, the deposit history you kept is part of the record.
Rent increases: covered home or exempt home
A change of manager is a common moment to look at rent. First find out whether the Tenant Protection Act covers the home. A single-family home or condo is exempt only if the owner is not a corporation, a REIT or an LLC with a corporate member, and the tenant received the exact statutory exemption notice (in the lease itself for tenancies begun or renewed on or after July 1, 2020). If that notice is missing, treat the home as covered.
For covered homes in Placer County, the Attorney General's chart puts the cap at 7.7% for increases starting August 1, 2025 through July 31, 2026, and 8.6% for increases starting August 1, 2026 through July 31, 2027 (oag.ca.gov/rentcaps). Once every tenant has lived there 12 months, or one tenant has lived there 24 months, a covered tenancy also has just-cause protection.
Notice timing applies to every month-to-month tenancy, covered or not: an increase of 10% or less over 12 months needs at least 30 days' written notice, and a larger one needs at least 90 days (Civil Code 827). The Auburn rental laws post covers the wider Tenant Protection Act rules.
Condition records: what you have and what you cannot create
Move-in photos became a legal duty only for tenancies that began on or after July 1, 2025. If your tenant moved in earlier, the law did not require photos at the start, and whatever notes, checklist or pictures you made then are the record. A checklist written today and dated back to move-in day is not a record, and it can damage your credibility in a deposit dispute.
What you can do is document the home's condition now, dated today. The manager will usually ask for an introductory walk-through. Entry needs reasonable written notice stating the date, approximate time and purpose (24 hours is presumed reasonable), during normal business hours unless the tenant agrees otherwise at the time (Civil Code 1954). At move-out, photos are required before and after any deducted repairs or cleaning, and no one may deduct for conditions that existed before the tenancy or for ordinary wear and tear.
A first-month plan
Most hand-offs go smoothly when owner and manager work through the same short list:
- Sign the management agreement and agree on who holds the deposit (the agreement checklist covers the clauses).
- Send the tenant a written notice of the new manager's details within 15 days.
- Transfer the deposit, rent ledger, signed lease, addenda and any notices you served.
- Hand over keys, garage and gate codes, and contacts for vendors who know the home.
- Schedule a noticed walk-through and dated photos of current condition.
- Check coverage under the Tenant Protection Act before any rent change.
Common questions
Do I need a new lease when I hire a property manager?
No. The existing lease stays in force and binds both you and the tenant until it ends or changes lawfully. The tenant must, however, receive the new manager's name, phone number and service address, plus rent payment details, in writing within 15 days of the change under Civil Code 1962. Many managers suggest a fresh lease when the current term ends, which is a separate decision.
Can the new manager raise the rent right away?
Only within the rules. If the home is covered by the Tenant Protection Act, the Placer County cap is 8.6% for increases starting between August 1, 2026 and July 31, 2027, and a fixed-term lease usually locks the rent until it ends. Month-to-month increases need 30 days' written notice, or 90 days if they exceed 10% over 12 months.
What if I never took move-in photos?
If the tenancy started before July 1, 2025, photos were not legally required at move-in, so you are not in violation. Do not create back-dated records. Have the manager take dated photos of current condition now, and keep any notes or emails from move-in. Remember that deductions cannot cover ordinary wear and tear or conditions that existed before the tenancy.
Does SPMG charge extra to take over a home that already has a tenant?
SPMG's pricing page states a typical fee of 8% to 10% of monthly rent or a flat fee depending on the property, with no turnover fees and no renewal fees. It asks owners transferring a home to contact the office for custom pricing. A free discovery call through the contact page is the way to get a quote for your specific home.
Recent changes
- January 1, 2026: AB 414 took effect: if a tenant paid rent or the deposit electronically, the remaining deposit generally must be refunded electronically unless the parties agreed in writing to another method. (AB 414 (2025), California Legislative Information)
Sources
- Civil Code 1962, Owner and manager disclosure (California Legislative Information)
- Civil Code 1950.5, Security deposits (California Legislative Information)
- Civil Code 1947.3, Rent payment methods (California Legislative Information)
- Rent cap chart (California Attorney General)
- Civil Code 1947.12, Rent cap (California Legislative Information)
- Business and Professions Code 10145, Trust funds (California Legislative Information)
- SPMG: Pricing
Facts checked November 9, 2026 against the sources above. Reviewed by Mark Shvaya, Designated Broker, CA DRE #02243502. This guide is general information about California rules, not legal or tax advice for your situation.
Keep reading
- DecideManagement agreement checklistRead a California management agreement clause by clause: exit terms, spending limits, trust money, fees and records.
- CompareAB 1482: covered or exemptTest your Auburn rental against each AB 1482 exemption, and see what the rent cap and just cause rules require if it is covered.
- DecideRental handover documentsWhat to gather before a manager takes over a foothill rental, from the lease to the septic map and W-9.