Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in California

It sounds to me that the 16-year old's parents or guardians do not want to be held responsible for her lease. Thus, I would want someone with a decent credit report to sign a lease with me if I were a landlord.

If you choose to contract with a 16-year-old, she can enforce the lease against you, but as a minor, you cannot enforce the lease against her. Why would you ever enter into a lease with a 16 and 1/2 year old, or even the 18-year old who probably has no credit references?

If the parents/guardians make her move back home for any reason whatsoever, if she is the only signator on the lease, you have no recourse against her, her parents, or her trust. I do not think that you would be doing anything illegal or immoral, but as a responsible landlord, I would make her parents or guardians and/or the trustee of her trust sign on the dotted line. This 16 and 1/2 year old is not administering her own trust; the law does not permit it because she is not an adult. Someone else holds the purse strings. Find out who holds the purse strings, then ask to meet with that person regarding the lease.