California AB 628 Appliance Law: What Bay Area Landlords Must Know

If you own rental property in California and your tenants have been providing their own refrigerator or stove, that arrangement just became a legal liability. As of January 1, 2026, Assembly Bill 628 requires every residential rental unit in the state to include a working refrigerator and a working stove or range.

This isn’t a suggestion or a best practice. It’s a redefinition of what California considers a habitable dwelling. Units that don’t comply are now legally substandard—the same classification a unit would receive if it lacked heat or running water.

For East Bay landlords who’ve operated on the “tenant provides their own appliances” model for years, possibly decades, this law demands immediate attention. Here’s what you need to know and what you should be doing about it right now.

What AB 628 Actually Changes

California’s habitability standards have always required landlords to provide certain basics: functioning plumbing, heating, weatherproofing, and adequate electrical systems. Appliances like refrigerators and stoves, however, occupied a gray area. Many landlords—particularly those with older East Bay properties—simply didn’t provide them. Tenants moved in with their own.

AB 628 eliminates that gray area entirely. The law amends California Civil Code Section 1941, adding refrigerators and stoves to the list of features a rental unit must have to be considered habitable. A unit without these appliances is now legally deficient, which exposes landlords to repair-and-deduct remedies, rent withholding, and potential habitability lawsuits.

The practical translation: you need to treat a missing or broken refrigerator with the same urgency you’d treat a broken furnace in December.

The Maintenance Obligation Goes Beyond Installation

Buying appliances and placing them in your units isn’t where the responsibility ends. Because refrigerators and stoves are now part of the habitability standard, landlords bear full responsibility for keeping them in working order for the duration of the tenancy.

A dead refrigerator isn’t an inconvenience your tenant can wait a week to have fixed. Under this new framework, it’s an emergency repair—comparable to a failed water heater or a broken lock on the front door. Tenants have the right to expect prompt action, and delays can trigger legal remedies.

The Recall Provision

AB 628 also includes a recall compliance requirement that many landlords will overlook. If a manufacturer issues a recall on an appliance in one of your units, you have 30 days from the date you receive that recall notice to repair or replace the affected unit. Ignoring a recall—or claiming you didn’t see the notice—puts you in direct violation.

This means landlords need a system for tracking which appliance models are in which units. If you own multiple properties, this becomes a genuine inventory management task. Standardizing appliance models across your portfolio simplifies this considerably.

The Tenant Waiver Exception

There is one path around the appliance requirement, but it’s narrow and comes with conditions.

If a tenant prefers to use their own appliances—say they own a high-end range or a smart refrigerator they’re particularly attached to—the landlord can be exempt from providing those specific appliances. However, this exemption requires a written waiver in the lease where the tenant explicitly agrees to use their own appliances and waives the landlord’s obligation to provide them.

A verbal agreement doesn’t count. A text message doesn’t count. It needs to be documented in the lease or as a formal addendum.

A Compliance Checklist for East Bay Landlords

If you’re not sure where your properties stand, here’s a practical rundown of what needs to happen:

1. Audit every unit. Identify which properties currently have landlord-owned appliances and which rely on tenant-provided ones. Any unit without a landlord-owned refrigerator and stove is now non-compliant unless a valid written waiver is in place.
2. Review your leases. Check existing lease agreements for appliance language. If a tenant is using their own appliances and the lease doesn’t include a proper waiver, you need to add an addendum or provide appliances.
3. Purchase and install where needed. For non-compliant units, acquire and install a refrigerator and stove. You don’t need top-of-the-line models—reliable, standard-capacity appliances that meet basic functionality requirements are sufficient.
4. Create an appliance inventory. Document the make, model, and serial number of every appliance in every unit. This record is essential for tracking warranty coverage, managing recalls, and planning replacements.
5. Update your maintenance protocols. Appliance repair requests now carry the same urgency as other habitability repairs. Make sure your maintenance team or property manager treats them accordingly.
6. Register appliances with manufacturers. This ensures you receive recall notices directly rather than relying on media coverage or tenant reports.

The Financial Impact: What to Expect

For landlords who need to outfit multiple units, the upfront cost is real. A basic but reliable refrigerator runs roughly $500 to $900, and a standard electric range falls in a similar bracket. Multiply that across several units and you’re looking at a meaningful capital expenditure.

There’s a silver lining, though. Appliances provided for rental properties are depreciable assets. The IRS allows landlords to depreciate appliances over a five-year period, and in many cases, you may be able to deduct the full cost in the year of purchase under Section 179 or bonus depreciation rules. Consult your CPA about the best approach for your tax situation.

Standardizing appliance models across your portfolio also creates long-term savings. When every unit has the same refrigerator, your maintenance team becomes familiar with common issues, replacement parts are easier to stock, and bulk purchasing discounts become available.

Why This Law Matters Beyond Compliance

It’s easy to view AB 628 as another regulatory burden. But from an investment standpoint, units with included appliances are simply more competitive in the rental market. Most modern renters expect a refrigerator and stove to be part of the unit—it’s been a standard expectation in most of the country for decades.

Properties that include basic appliances attract a broader pool of applicants, reduce vacancy time, and signal to tenants that the landlord maintains the property to a professional standard. For owners looking to justify modest rent increases, providing and maintaining quality appliances is a tangible improvement that tenants can see and appreciate.

The landlords who adapt quickly and treat this as a portfolio upgrade rather than a penalty will come out ahead.

Stay Compliant Without the Headache

Regulatory changes like AB 628 are exactly why professional property management earns its keep. Tracking appliance inventories, updating lease language, managing recall compliance, and handling emergency repairs across multiple units is a real operational lift—especially for owners who manage their own properties.

Whether you need help auditing your current portfolio, sourcing appliances efficiently, or updating your lease agreements to meet the new requirements, a proactive approach now prevents expensive problems later.