Legislation passed in a unanimous vote at today’s board of supervisors meeting and supported by Mayor Daniel Lurie would bar evictions for renters who owe less than the fair-market value of one month’s rent. The change comes amid soaring rents and rising evictions in San Francisco. 

Until now, the city’s rent ordinance allowed landlords to evict tenants for nonpayment of rent, regardless of the outstanding amount. The new ordinance, introduced by Supervisor Jackie Fielder and co-sponsored by seven supervisors, will set a monetary threshold for nonpayment evictions. Under the new law , landlords can only evict tenants who owe more than the equivalent of one month’s “fair market rent.”

Currently, San Francisco’s fair market rent is set by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development at $2,485 for a studio, $2,977 for a one-bedroom apartment and $3,604 for a two-bedroom apartment.

Many in the city pay far more than that, and high housing costs have been top-of-mind for San Francisco renters and politicians. In September, Mayor Daniel Lurie declared a rent emergency amid the city’s AI boom.  

At a committee meeting last month, Fielder said that 25% of eviction cases in 2025 were for less than the fair market value of a month’s rent. “This is a simple but very meaningful change to our rent ordinance that will help curb so many of the evictions we are seeing today,” she said.  

Los Angeles, Oakland and Berkeley have passed similar laws that set the bar for eviction at one month of fair market rent. Los Angeles is in an ongoing legal battle after the Apartment Association of Los Angeles sued the city in 2023, claiming that the ordinance violated existing state laws.

In a letter to Board President Rafael Mandelman, the San Francisco Apartment Association referenced the L.A. lawsuit and said it believes the court will uphold the landlords’ position.

“By adopting the ordinance now, the Board would be inviting litigation over a policy whose validity will soon be resolved by the state’s highest court,” said the statement. 

The San Francisco legislation could go into effect as early as December.