Replacing a roommate in San Francisco.

When a housemate moves out, San Francisco gives the tenants who stay a way to bring in a replacement, even if the lease limits subletting. Here is how it works.

Last reviewed October 5, 2026. General information, not legal advice.

• Can we replace a roommate who is moving out?
• How does the written request work?
• When can the landlord say no?
• Can the landlord raise the rent?
• What can we charge the new roommate?
• What can a roommate listing say?
• A request you can adapt

Can we replace a roommate who is moving out?

In most San Francisco rental units, yes. Under Administrative Code section 37.9(a)(2)(A), a landlord may not evict over a sublet when the landlord unreasonably refused a tenant’s written request, as long as the tenant who asked keeps living in the unit and the new person replaces the departing roommate one for one. This applies even if the lease restricts subletting.

The right belongs to the tenants who stay. It does not let anyone hand over the entire unit or assign the whole tenancy, and it does not cover sublets shorter than 30 days for tourist or transient use. If everyone is leaving, read leaving your San Francisco lease early.

The rule covers nearly every rental unit in the city, including buildings first occupied after June 13, 1979, which are exempt from rent limits but not from these eviction protections. A few kinds of housing are excluded, such as dorms, care facilities, and hotel rooms during the first 32 days.

How does the written request work?

1. Ask in writing before the new roommate moves in. A request delivered in person counts as received that day. Add 2 days for email and 5 days after the postmark for mail. The 14 days begin the next day.
2. Answer any request for information. Within 5 days, the landlord may ask for an application or background information about the new person. You then have 5 days to provide it. A credit or income check is allowed only if the new person will pay rent to the landlord.
3. Wait for a written answer. If the landlord does not deny the request in writing with reasons within 14 days of receiving it, the request is deemed approved.
4. Sign if asked. The landlord may ask the new roommate to agree in writing to the terms of the lease.

Each existing tenant may make one replacement request in any 12 months unless there is good cause. Before evicting over a sublet, a landlord must give written notice and at least 10 days to fix the problem.

When can the landlord say no?

Under Rent Board Rules section 6.15A(e), reasonable grounds include a lack of creditworthiness, but only if the new person will pay the landlord directly; the new person not providing requested information on time; an intentional misrepresentation; or a direct threat. A landlord who lives in the same unit can decline more broadly.

Can the landlord raise the rent?

Not because of the replacement. The Rent Board says a landlord may not increase the rent based on replacing a departing tenant, even if the tenants agree.

There is one important exception. When the last original occupant moves out, the Costa Hawkins Rental Housing Act can let the owner set a new rent for subtenants who moved in later. Under Rent Board Rules section 6.14, the landlord must act within 90 days of written notice that the last original occupant left, or the right is waived. A cotenant, someone the landlord accepted as a tenant, for example by taking their rent directly, is not subject to that increase.

What can we charge the new roommate?

A master tenant may charge a subtenant no more than a proportional share of the total rent, divided by square footage, equally, or another fair method. Anything above that is void. Before the tenancy starts, the master tenant must tell the subtenant in writing how much rent they pay the owner.

What can a roommate listing say?

Describe the room, the home and the house rules, not the ideal person. For a room in a shared home, California allows a listing to say the space is available to one sex. Other preferences about protected characteristics are not allowed, including race, religion, national origin, disability, familial status, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, and source of income, which includes housing vouchers such as Section 8.

A request you can adapt.

Send it in a way you can prove, such as email or certified mail, and keep a copy.

Dear [landlord or property manager],

I am a tenant at [address and unit], and I will continue living there. My roommate [name] plans to move out on [date].

Under San Francisco Administrative Code section 37.9(a)(2)(A) and Rent Board Rules sections 6.15A and 6.15B, I am writing to request approval of [new roommate's name] as a one for one replacement, moving in on or after [date].

If you need an application or background information, please let me know within 5 days of receiving this request, and we will provide it within 5 days. Please reply in writing within 14 days.

Thank you,
[your name]
[phone and email]

Sources.

• San Francisco Rent Ordinance, Administrative Code Chapter 37, Rent Board compilation of February 9, 2026, sections 37.2(r), 37.3(c) and 37.9(a)(2)
• Rent Board Rules and Regulations, amended January 13, 2026, sections 6.14, 6.15A, 6.15B and 6.15C
• Rent Board, replacement of roommates and roommates and subletting
• Rent Board, rent increases under section 6.14 and Costa Hawkins
• California Civil Code section 1954.53
• California Government Code section 12927 and section 12955

This guide is general information about San Francisco and California law as of the date above, not legal advice. For help with your situation, contact the San Francisco Rent Board or a lawyer.