Rent-Ready Checklist for an Older Auburn Home: The Legal Items to Finish Before You List

An older house, a short list of legal must-haves

Many Auburn rentals are not new. Census estimates for 2020 to 2024 put the median year built for homes in the city at 1978, so a large share of local houses sit right around the cutoff year for federal lead rules. Older homes can be lovely rentals, but they also tend to carry original alarms, unstrapped water heaters and doors that have lost a deadbolt somewhere along the way. None of these are expensive to fix ahead of time, and each one is harder to explain after a tenant has moved in.

This checklist covers the compliance side of getting ready: what has to be installed, tested, disclosed and recorded before a tenant signs. The cleaning, repairs and walk-through that make a home show well are covered in the site's post on preparing a property for rent. If you are still deciding how much to fix or upgrade, start with our must-fix versus optional upgrade guide.

Paperwork that must exist before anyone signs

If the house was built before 1978, the federal lead disclosure rule applies to most leases. Before the tenant is bound by the lease, you give the EPA pamphlet "Protect Your Family From Lead in Your Home," disclose any lead-based paint or lead hazards you know about, and hand over any reports you have. The lease or an attachment carries the federal lead warning statement and signatures, and you keep the signed copy for at least 3 years. You do not have to test the home first. The details, exemptions and repainting rules are in our lead paint guide.

Other California disclosures, such as the flood hazard notice, bed bug notice and Megan's Law language, belong in the lease itself. They are listed with their code sections in our lease disclosures checklist.

Devices to test, not assume

Walk the house with a ladder and a flashlight before the listing goes live. These items come straight from California statutes, and each one is easy to check off with a dated photo.

• Smoke alarms. Every unit needs State Fire Marshal approved alarms, and the owner must make sure they work when each new tenancy starts (Health and Safety Code 13113.7). Working older alarms do not have to be swapped out, but battery-only replacements sold in California now come with a sealed 10-year battery.
• Carbon monoxide alarms. Required in a home with a fossil-fuel heater or appliance, a fireplace or an attached garage (Health and Safety Code 17926). That covers most foothill homes with propane, natural gas or a wood stove, and the device must work when the tenant takes possession. For fuel and stove questions, see our propane, wood stove and CO safety guide.
• Water heater strapping. Residential water heaters must be braced, anchored or strapped against earthquake movement (Health and Safety Code 19211).
• Locks. Each main swinging entry door needs a working deadbolt with a bolt that extends at least 13/16 of an inch, and openable windows need locking devices, with exceptions for louvered and casement windows and for windows set well above the ground (Civil Code 1941.3).

Kitchen and livability basics under the 2026 rule

Since January 1, 2026, a working stove and a working refrigerator are part of California's habitability list for any lease entered into, amended or extended on or after that date. A recalled appliance does not count. A tenant may choose to bring their own refrigerator only if the lease contains the statutory checkbox statement, and you cannot make that a condition of renting.

The rest of Civil Code 1941.1 is worth a final pass too: hot and cold running water, working heat, safe wiring, lighting and plumbing, weather protection, and a clean home free of pests. If something on that list is not working, fix it before you advertise.

A sensible order of work before listing

Owners who leave compliance items for the last week often end up delaying the first showing. Working in this order keeps the paperwork and the hardware moving together:

• Confirm the year the house was built and pull together any lead reports or past inspection records.
• Prepare the lead disclosure form and print the EPA pamphlet if the house predates 1978.
• Test every smoke and carbon monoxide alarm, replace any that fail, and note each location.
• Check the water heater straps, then every entry door deadbolt and window lock.
• Look up the stove and refrigerator model numbers against manufacturer recall notices.
• Fix anything on the habitability list that is not working, and keep the invoices.
• Schedule the move-in photo walk-through for the day the tenancy starts.

Photos on the day the keys change hands

For tenancies that begin on or after July 1, 2025, Civil Code 1950.5 requires the landlord to photograph the unit immediately before, or at the start of, the tenancy. Those photos, together with move-out photos, are what support any later deposit deduction for repairs or cleaning. The move-out side has its own timing: after the tenant returns possession, you photograph the unit before any repairs or cleaning you plan to deduct, and again after that work is done.

Shoot every room, the inside of the appliances, the water heater straps, the alarm locations and the yard. Keep the files with the signed lead disclosure and the lease. The site's move-in and move-out guide walks through room-by-room inspections and the deposit timeline.

SPMG lists lease agreements and the related paperwork among its management services. If you would like a second set of eyes on an older house before it goes on the market, contact SPMG for a free discovery call.