ADUs: A New Weapon for Landlords to Create Turmoil and Hardship for Tenants

ADU'S - Renters Are at Risk of Losing Their Vital Parking Spaces

A new and expanding issue is emerging for renters throughout the greater Los Angeles area and it’s definitely not good news. Tenants face losing crucial parking spots as landlords construct Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) in the parking areas of current apartment complexes.

Although ADUs are promoted as a remedy for the housing crisis, new laws that weaken tenants’ rights actually open up loopholes for landlords to increase profits and evict long-term tenants.

What Are ADUs and What Does the New Legislation Say?

Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) are small residential units constructed on the same property as a primary house or apartment.

At the start of 2025, Senate Bill 1211, authored by former State Senator Nancy Skinner (San Leandro-D) in California went into effect. It is interpreted as landlords having legal rights to remove tenant parking spaces for ADU construction, regardless of parking guarantees in existing leases or rental agreements. Local jurisdictions are prohibited from stopping the parking loss or requiring replacement parking.

For housing regulated by the Los Angeles Rent Stabilization Ordinance (RSO), discontinuing a housing service provided at the beginning of a tenancy (such as a parking space) require a permanent rent decrease reflecting the comparable cost of the service.

How Tenants Are Affected

However, for tenants in high-density areas with scarce parking such as Koreatown, Westlake, Pico Union, or West Hollywood, a rent reduction does not compensate for the difficulty and hardship of losing their parking.

Often, eliminating parking acts as a form of constructive eviction, compelling rent-controlled tenants to relocate by removing vital amenities.

Tenants who are vulnerable, including the elderly, disabled, low-income individuals, those receiving medical treatments, night shift workers, or families with young children, face greater challenges. They lose essential parking for work, mobility, independence, or accessibility to perform simple tasks.

Parking that is both reliable and accessible is essential, not a luxury.

Are the New ADUs Affordable Housing?

Furthermore, these new ADU units will not have affordable rents, and the specific laws do not compel owners to ensure they remain affordable for low-income residents.

When tenants of rent-controlled apartments leave, landlords can rent those units at market rates, decreasing the availability of affordable housing.

Bad Laws Result in Bad Consequences

While SB 1211 may have aimed to do good, it is a flawed law that compromises tenants’ rights. The law directly conflicts with local rent control regulations, the State Tenant Protection Act of 2019, and other tenant safeguard statutes.

The Coalition for Economic Survival (CES) asserts that local governments are incorrectly applying this law because the California Department of Housing and Community Development has provided inadequate directions.

A lease or rental agreement cannot be breached unilaterally by a landlord, including tenants’ parking spaces if provided. In the same way, a landlord cannot turn a tenant’s bedroom or kitchen into a separate rental unit.

Crucially, every agreement governed by rent control and just cause eviction laws automatically transforms into a perpetual continuing leasehold by law. Accordingly, tenancies under these regulations remain valid until the tenant either voluntarily vacates, dies, or is lawfully evicted for one of the specified just cause reasons in the law.

Therefore, tenancies governed by these regulations continue to be valid until the tenant either leaves voluntarily, passes away, or is legally evicted for one of the just cause reasons outlined in the law. ADU construction is not mentioned among the stated reasons.

If the unit were vacant, it would be a whole different matter. In this situation, the landlord would be entitled to remove parking from that unit to construct an ADU. Still, it is not clear that the state legislature agreed to eliminate key amenities like parking and storage from a unit with existing occupants.

With respect to legislative history to interpret the legislature’s intent, SB 1211’s statutory language makes no mention of removing tenant-occupied parking spaces for ADU construction.

Lawsuit Filed Contests Parking Removal

The law firm Venskus and Associates, whose lawyers regularly volunteer at CES’ Tenants’ Rights Clinic, has filed a lawsuit against the City of Los Angeles on behalf of tenants concerning the city’s issuance of building permits for ADU construction that caused them to lose parking.

The lawsuit alleges that issuing the permits has caused irreparable harm to the tenants.

The lawsuit asserts that the City did not adhere to its own laws and procedures by issuing the permit without demanding a Tenant Habitability Plan and failed to act according to legal requirements when granting the development permit.

A Preliminary Court Victory

On May 21, 2026, a LA Superior Court judge granted a preliminary injunction in connection with the lawsuit.

The judge’s initial decision prohibits the landlord “from removing, towing, impounding or otherwise interfering with tenants’ vehicles or personal property.”

The ruling further bars the landlord “from initiating, threatening, or pursuing unlawful detainer proceeding or other eviction-related actions based on tenants’ continued use of their existing parking spaces or based on tenants’ refusal to accept a unilateral change in the terms of tenancy related to parking.”

The judge also ordered and restrained the landlord “from commencing any demolition, construction, alteration, or other work pursuant to the City of LA issued ADU permits in or affecting the tenant-occupied garages or parking spaces at the property.”

The Superior Court is set to address the merits of the case in the near future.

The State Legislature Needs to Correct the Injustice They Caused

CES has been contacting elected officials in the state legislature and LA City Council to address this injustice. We want state legislation to revise SB 1211 to clarify that it does not authorize taking parking away from existing tenants to build ADUs.

We urge you to get in touch with your state legislator and City Council member to support and take action on this matter.

SB 1211 is an unreasonable and poorly drafted law that needs to be fixed. This is yet another instance of YIMBYs, who strongly supported the bill, neglecting the protection and strengthening of renters’ rights.

(Larry Gross is Executive Director of the Coalition for Economic Survival (CES), a Los Angeles-based organization advocating for tenants’ rights, affordable housing, and economic justice.)