Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California

Re: Pet Agreement and Deposit

I am assuming that there is a written rental agreement between you and the apartment manager which does not have a provision allowing you to have a pet. If there is a written agreement, but it does not have a written provision that allows you to have a pet, then the manager or owner can demand that you provide a security deposit for the pet or that you remove the pet. If there is no WRITTEN agreement, only an oral/ verbal agreement, and that verbal agreement did not give you permission, the landlord can still demand a deposit. The fact that you brought a pet into the premises, unless you did so with permission, does not constitute the manager "allowing" you to move it in, nor does it mean there was any waiver of rights on the part of the landlord.

Any month to month agreement, whether written or oral, allows the landlord to change the terms of the tenancy with thirty (30) days notice; the landlord can increase the rent or change other aspects of the agreement with thirty (30) days notice, and he does not have to a reason (assuming you are not in a rent-controlled area, which areas are RARE). Given this, if your tenancy is month to month (written or oral), be aware that the landlord can give you thirty (30) days notice to vacate regardless of the pet situation. If there is a written agreement wich states that you do not have permisson to have a pet, he CAN give you a three(3) day notice to either "cure" your breach of covenant (by removing the pet) or vacate (because you have violated the terms of the agreement because it does not have a provision PERMITTING the pet). I do not know why you believe the law does not allow a "pet deposit" in your situation.