"Rent Control" means a couple of different things in Berkeley. Your unit may be exempt from some or all provisions of the rent control Ordinance.

The following units are exempt from rent stabilization requirements (and therefore registration), but they are NOT exempt from the security deposit and good cause eviction requirements:

• Rental units owned by a government agency.
• Units leased by the Berkeley Housing Authority, or to tenants assisted under the Section 8 or the Shelter Plus Care Programs.
• Rental units constructed after June 30, 1980, provided such units were not created by rehabilitation or conversion.
• Single family residences first subject to the Rent Ordinance on or after January 1, 1996.
• Single family residences re-rented on or after January 1, 1996, unless: (1) the landlord evicted the prior tenant for owner-occupancy or by changing the terms of tenancy; (2) the landlord receives a financial contribution from a public entity in exchange for reducing the rent; or (3) the unit contains serious, cited code violations that have been outstanding for at least 6 months. (See Regulation 508.)

• Units rented primarily to transient guests for less than 14 consecutive days and subject to the hotel tax are subject to the Short Term Rental oridinance and not the Rent Stablization Ordinance.
• Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) parcels in which the owner of record of at least 50% lives in one of the units as their primary residence. There are certain AUDs that are subject to the Rent Stablization Ordinance and it is important to check those laws before proceeding with renting your ADU.
• Non-profit cooperative housing owned and controlled by a majority of the residents.
• Rental units in any hospital, skilled nursing facility, health facility, asylum, or non-profit home for the aged.
• Rental units on a two unit property where one unit was, on December 31, 1979, and one unit is, currently, the principal residence of a 50 percent owner of record. (aka Golden Duplex)
• Rental units where the tenant shares kitchen and/or bath facilities with an owner of record who holds least a 50 percent interest, provided the owner maintains his or her principal residence on the property.
• Units rented by non-profit accredited institutions of higher learning to tenants who are faculty, staff or students of the institution, or of a member school of the Graduate Theological Union, provided that the institution owned the unit as of January 1, 1988.