Plain guides to California rules that owners must keep records for, and how a system can track them. These guides aren’t legal advice.
Read this ifYou manage rentals in California and hold your tenants’ security deposits.
California security deposit law for landlords: the one-month cap, move-in and move-out photos, the 21-day statement, and the records behind each rule.
Read this ifYou own or manage rentals in California and need to know how much, and how often, you can raise the rent.
AB 1482 rent increase rules for California landlords: the 5% plus CPI or 10% cap, 30- and 90-day notice, exemptions, and the rent history to keep per unit.
Read this ifYou set prices for a café, bar, restaurant or shop in California and want your menus, price tags and checkout to follow SB 478.
SB 478 menu pricing in plain words: what California menus, price tags and online checkouts must show, how restaurant fees must appear, and the records to keep.
Read this ifYou do public works jobs in California, or want to bid on them, and someone has to file certified payroll for your crew.
Certified payroll in California: who files with DIR, how often, what each record needs, and how to keep hours by worker, project and classification.
Read this ifYou run a contracting or trade business in California and take down payments and progress payments on residential jobs for owners and tenants.
The home improvement down payment limit in California is $1,000 or 10%, whichever is less. How to set progress payments and keep records that follow the work.
Read this ifYou sign remodeling, repair or install jobs with homeowners in California.
Home improvement contract rules in California: what page one must show, the 3, 5 and 7-day right to cancel, the 2026 email change, and the records to keep.
Read this ifYou run crews in California and want their meal breaks recorded the way the state expects.
Meal break tracking in California for field crews: the 5- and 10-hour rules, what Wage Order 16 says to record, no rounding, and how to log meals by phone.
Read this ifYou employ staff in California and want sick leave balances that are right on the pay stub, on file and on their phones.
California paid sick leave tracking for employers: the current rules, the records to keep for three years, and balances staff can see on pay stubs and phones.
Read this ifYou run a café, restaurant or bar in California and want your staff’s tips pooled and split the right way.
Tip pooling in California for owners: who can share, who can’t, when card tips are due, and the per-shift record that shows what each person got.
Read this ifYou hold a California contractor license and send quotes, sign contracts or run ads.
Where California requires your CSLB license number on contracts, quotes, ads, trucks and your website, and how to keep it right on every document you send.
Read this ifYou run a café, restaurant, bar or food truck in California and need to know which staff hold a valid food handler card.
Food handler card tracking for California food businesses: the 30-day and three-year rules, county exceptions, SB 476 pay rules and the records to keep.
Read this ifYou manage rentals, and repair requests reach you by text, voicemail, email and in the hallway.
How to set up a maintenance request system: one log for every text, call and email, the fields to record, urgency rules, and California repair timing.
Read this ifYou bring in subcontractors on California home improvement jobs and want their license details ready when a homeowner asks.
Subcontractor license tracking for California home improvement jobs: what SB 517 requires since 2026, what to check on each sub, and how to keep the list ready.
Read this ifYou run a California shop, café, showroom or office that customers visit, and you have a website.
Website accessibility for a California small business with a storefront: what the ADA and Unruh Act require, a check to run today, and how to record fixes.
Read this ifYou run a California contracting company with a crew, subs or both, and need proof of workers’ comp that never lapses.
Contractor workers’ comp certificate tracking in California: who needs a policy, what CSLB keeps on file, how to check subs, and the expiry dates that matter.
