California Now Requires Move-In and Move-Out Photos: What Landlords Must Do
If you rent out a home in California, the deposit math just changed. You can no longer deduct from a tenant's security deposit on your word alone. The law now requires you to back it up with photos, taken at specific times, and sent to the tenant.
This is AB 2801. It amended California Civil Code section 1950.5, the security deposit law. I'm a landlord myself, so this one is personal. Here's what it actually requires, the two deadlines people keep mixing up, and how to document a unit so a tenant can't later claim you faked it.
The short version
California landlords must now photograph a rental unit to support any deduction from a security deposit. There are two separate requirements with two separate start dates:
| Requirement | Start date | What you photograph |
|---|---|---|
| Move-out photos | April 1, 2025 | The unit after the tenant returns it, before any repairs or cleanings you'll deduct for, and again after those repairs or cleanings are done |
| Move-in photos | July 1, 2025 | The unit immediately before, or at the start of, the tenancy |
Then you have to share those photos with the tenant, along with the itemized statement of what you kept and why.
What the law actually says
The new language lives in subdivision (g) of Civil Code section 1950.5:
For tenancies that begin on or after July 1, 2025, the landlord shall take photographs of the unit immediately before, or at the inception of, the tenancy.
Beginning April 1, 2025, the landlord shall take photographs of the unit within a reasonable time after the possession of the unit is returned to the landlord, but prior to any repairs or cleanings for which the landlord will make a deduction from or claim against the security deposit... and shall also take photographs of the unit within a reasonable time after such repairs or cleanings are completed.
You can read the official bill text yourself on the California Legislature site (search "AB 2801 leginfo"). I'd rather you read the source than take my word for it.
Don't mix up the two dates
This is the single most common mistake I see in the explainers floating around. The two requirements did not start at the same time.
- Move-out photos: April 1, 2025. This kicks in for deductions, regardless of when the tenancy started.
- Move-in photos: July 1, 2025. This applies to tenancies that begin on or after that date.
So if a tenant moved in years ago and is moving out now, you still owe move-out photos. The move-in requirement only attaches to new tenancies that start on or after July 1, 2025.
You have to send the photos to the tenant
Taking the photos isn't the whole job. The law says you must provide those photos to the tenant along with the itemized statement of deductions, plus a written explanation of the repair or cleaning costs. That statement is due no later than 21 calendar days after the tenant vacates.
The law even spells out how you can deliver the photos: by mail, email, flash drive, or "by providing a link where the tenant may view the photographs online." A link counts. Keep that in mind, because it matters for how you store and send your documentation.
Where regular photos fall short
Here's the part nobody talks about. The law tells you to take photos. It doesn't make those photos believable on its own.
Picture the dispute. You deduct for a scratched floor. You send move-in and move-out photos. The tenant writes back: "Those move-in photos were taken after I left, and the move-out ones are edited." Now it's your word against theirs again, which is exactly what the law was trying to fix.
A plain phone photo can be edited, and the date stamp can say anything. A photo that locks the time and place at the moment you take it, and can't be changed afterward, kills that argument before it starts. The photo can only show what was actually in front of you, when you say it was.
That's the gap I built ProofMi to close. You take the photo in the app, it locks the moment at capture, and you get a shareable link you can send right alongside the itemized statement, which is one of the delivery methods the law names. Full disclosure, I'm the developer and a landlord, so take that with a grain of salt. The point stands without the product: take photos a tenant can't credibly dispute, not just photos.
A simple move-in / move-out routine
- At move-in, before the tenant unpacks. Photograph every room, floors, walls, appliances, and any existing wear. This is your baseline.
- At move-out, before you touch anything. Photograph the same rooms in the same order, before any cleaning or repair you plan to deduct for.
- After repairs or cleanings. Photograph again once the work the deduction covers is done.
- Send with the statement. Within 21 days of the tenant vacating, send the itemized deductions, the written cost explanation, and the photos.
- Keep the originals. Hold onto everything until the deposit is settled or any dispute is closed.
Bottom line
California turned a best practice into a legal requirement. If you're deducting from a deposit, you need photos at move-in and move-out, and you need to send them to the tenant with the breakdown. Do it the easy way and just snap some pictures, or do it the way that actually holds up if the tenant pushes back, with photos that prove their own time, place, and that they weren't changed.
I'm still learning every corner of how landlords use this, so if you've hit a deposit dispute and want to compare notes, I read every message at support@proofmi.xyz.
This article summarizes a public law and links to the official text. It is not legal advice. Check the current statute and your local rules.
