Who Pays for Repairs in California Rentals? The Simple Rule Every Investor Must Know

By Brian Bean | June 23, 2025

Part 1 of our 4-Part Maintenance Mastery Series

Wear and Tear Is Yours; Misuse Is Theirs — and Speed Beats Blame

By BRIAN BEAN
Rental Home Advocate | Property Manager | Real Estate Broker

When something breaks at your rental property, the question that keeps most landlords wondering is simple: Who pays for the repair?

If you’re like most California rental property owners, you’ve probably found yourself in this situation more than once. A resident calls with a problem, and suddenly you’re trying to figure out if this repair is your responsibility or theirs.

The confusion is understandable. With rental homes, things break and regular maintenance is a given. But many property owners are unsure who is responsible when things stop working, and that can lead to expensive mistakes or resident disputes.

The “Accidental Landlord” Problem

Here’s what we see happening with mom-and-pop rental owners across the Inland Empire:

When a renter calls with a problem, “accidental landlords” often get caught up in a cycle of pain and blame. They get emotional when something breaks and blame the resident (even if they don’t say it).

Next up? Inactivity. It may be because of the cost, or because they don’t have a ready list of vendors for every trade, but they move too slowly. And that irritates their residents while simultaneously increasing the risk of more damage to the property.

Next, they call their buddy “Chuck in a truck,” who doesn’t have a license or insurance, but he’s cheap. And Chuck handles the problem, but maybe not the right way.

This problem plays out every single day, and it always starts with focusing on cost instead of the solution.

The Simple Mindset Shift

Here’s a simple shift in mindset to help you make clear and rapid decisions:

Repairs and maintenance are the food and oxygen of a rental property. Embrace that fact, and you’ll end up saving money in the long run.

The One Simple Rule

In California, who’s responsible to pay when something breaks? Well, it depends first on what’s in your rental agreement. But typically, it boils down to regular wear and tear vs. misuse.

If someone throws a baseball through a window, it would be logical to put the liability on them and expect them to pay for the repair. But if an earthquake rolled through and cracked the same window, it’s unlikely that you could blame the occupant for that damage.

“Wear and Tear” usually refers to the natural deterioration of things from normal use over time. The alternative might be damage because of an accident, negligence, or just plain misuse.

Typical Owner Expenses (Wear and Tear):

  • Air conditioning breaks down after years of service
  • Water heater starts leaking
  • Roof leaks
  • Plumbing valve under a sink starts leaking
  • Dishwasher pump dies after 10 years
  • Normal travel paths in carpet over time

Common Resident Expenses (Misuse/Damage):

  • Holes in walls larger than a tack hole
  • Burns, stains, or tears in carpet from accidents (as long as carpet is less than 10 years old)
  • Broken windows from impacts
  • Clogged drains from inappropriate items
  • Pet damage to any surfaces

Why Speed Matters More Than Cost

Deciding who is responsible for the cost of a repair is important, and it will affect your finances. But if you let that decision bottleneck the actual repair, you create different problems:

  • Unhappy residents, who are more likely to move out and create vacancy (which is the biggest profit killer for your rental home)
  • Higher repair costs as damage continues to accrue during a delay

So make sure your first instinct is to IMMEDIATELY fix what’s broken because that will end up saving you money in the long run.

Your 5-Step Professional System

Step 1: Document Everything Before a new resident moves in, have detailed photos or video of the home to show the condition of the property and all major systems. Set clear expectations and lease language about who is responsible in the event of a repair.

Step 2: Triage Immediately When a repair request is made, triage it immediately to determine if it’s an emergency or a routine repair, and assign the appropriate repair person. Speed to repair statistically has the biggest impact on your resident’s happiness meter.

Step 3: Investigate Every Issue Document all responses.

Step 4: Determine Cause Based on Facts Make decisions for who is responsible based on your policy, not emotions or cost. Then communicate your reasoning clearly.

Step 5: Give Thanks and Show Respect Your residents aren’t looking for ways to make your life miserable. They just want to have a nice place to call home. Thank them for quickly letting you know about a problem so that you can handle it before it gets worse and more expensive.

The Investment Perspective

Look, repairs and maintenance aren’t fun, and they aren’t cheap. But they are a normal part of owning a rental property, which is the sure-fire way to build wealth for you and your family.

Create a great vendor list and be ready when the time comes to call on someone. Because the faster that you respond, the cheaper it’ll be to fix the problem, and the more profitable it will be for your rental home business.

Remember: Happy residents pay rent on time, reduce vacancy, and take better care of your property.

Take Action Today

Ready to implement this system? Here’s how to get started:

  1. Get our FREE Wear and Tear Guide – Email brian@dreambigpm.com with “WEAR AND TEAR” in the subject line
  2. Review your current lease language about repair responsibilities
  3. Create your vendor list before you need it
  4. Document your next property’s condition with detailed photos

Questions about your specific situation? Call me directly at 951-314-5402. I’m happy to share more information.

Brian Bean is President of Dream Big Property Management, serving rental property investors across the Inland Empire. With over two decades of experience, Brian helps transform “accidental landlords” into intentional investors through education and professional property management services.

The Complete Maintenance Mastery Series

Related Reading

Full Transcript

Transcript of the video above — Brian Bean, Broker/Owner and Rental Home Advocate, Dream Big Property Management. CA DRE #01346382. Lightly edited for readability.

When something breaks at your rental property, who pays for the repair? I’ve got one simple rule to help you figure that out.

Hi, I’m Brian Bean with Dream Big Property Management here in Riverside, California. Today we’re talking about maintenance and repairs. Specifically, who’s responsible for keeping your rental home in proper operating condition?

With rental homes, things break. Regular maintenance is a given, but many property owners are unsure who’s responsible when things stop working, and that can lead to expensive mistakes or resident disputes. So I’m going to give you one simple rule to help you cut through that confusion and keep your property running at the highest level.

It all starts with having the right frame of mind. Now, for context, let’s back up and start with the absolutes that every rental investor faces today. Number one, things break. It’s just part of the deal. Two, it’s usually cheaper to maintain things than to wait until they break, but it’s always cheaper to fix fast than to fix slow. Number three, California law requires that owners provide a habitable living environment for their residents. Four, if things go unfixed, residents become unhappy. And lastly, number five, happy residents pay rent on time, reduce vacancy, and take better care of your property.

But a lot of landlords handle repairs and maintenance in unhealthy ways. When a renter calls with problems, mom-and-pop rental owners, sometimes referred to as accidental landlords, often get caught up in the cycle of pain and blame. They get emotional when something breaks, and even if they don’t say it, they blame the resident.

Next, inactivity. It may be because of the cost, or it could just be because they don’t have a ready list of vendors for every trade, but they don’t move quickly enough, and that irritates the residents while simultaneously increasing the risk of more damage to the property.

Next, they call their buddy Chuck in a truck, who doesn’t have a license, doesn’t have insurance, but he’s cheap. And Chuck handles the problem, but maybe not in the right way. This problem plays out every single day, and it always starts with the cost.

But here’s a simple shift in mindset to help you make clear and rapid decisions. Repairs and maintenance are the food and oxygen of a rental property. Embrace that fact and you’ll end up saving money in the long run.

Now, I promised you the one simple rule, so let’s get into that. But before we start, a disclaimer. We are not attorneys and the following information should not be construed as legal advice. The following should be considered for informational or entertainment purposes only. Please consult with your legal counsel for advice on your specific situation.

Now, in California, who’s responsible to pay when something breaks? Well, it depends first on what’s in your rental agreement, but typically it boils down to regular wear and tear versus misuse. If someone throws a baseball through a window, it would be logical to put the liability on them and expect them to pay for that repair. But if an earthquake rolled through and cracked the same window, it’s unlikely that you could blame the occupant for that damage.

Wear and tear refers to the natural deterioration of things from normal use over time. The alternative might be damage because of an accident, negligence, or just plain misuse of that thing. And so if your rental agreement puts the liability on the responsible party, that’s the measure that you might go by. Was this regular wear and tear, or did it break because of misuse?

Here’s some examples of wear and tear owner expenses. Air conditioner breaks down after years of service. Water heater starts leaking. Roof leaks. Plumbing valve under a sink starts leaking. Dishwasher pump goes out after 10 years. Normal travel paths in your carpet over time.

And here’s some common examples that might be considered misuse by an occupant. Holes in walls larger than a tack hole. Burns, stains, or tears in carpet from accidents, as long as the carpet is less than 10 years old. Broken windows from impacts, clogged drains from inappropriate items, and pet damage to pretty much any surface.

Deciding who is responsible for the cost of repair is important, and it will affect your finances. But if you let that decision bottleneck the actual repair, you’ll be creating different problems. One, unhappy residents. They’re more likely to move out and create vacancy, which is the biggest profit killer for your rental home. Two, higher repair costs as damage continues to occur during a delay. So make sure your first instinct is to immediately fix what’s broken, because that will end up saving you money in the long run.

Now, here’s a plan you can put in place to deal with repairs.

Step one, always document everything. Before a new resident moves in, have detailed photos or a video of the home to show the condition of the property and all major systems. Set clear expectations and create lease language about who’s responsible in the event of a repair.

Step two, triage immediately. When a repair request is made, triage it immediately to determine if it’s an emergency or just a routine repair, and assign the appropriate repair person. Speed to repair is statistically the biggest impact on your resident’s happiness meter.

Step three, investigate every issue and document all responses.

Step four, determine the cause based on the facts, and make decisions about who’s responsible based on your policy, not emotions. And then communicate that clearly.

Step five, give thanks and show respect. Your residents are not looking for ways to make your life miserable. They just want a nice place to call home. Thank them for quickly letting you know about a problem so that you can handle it before it gets worse.

Look, repairs and maintenance aren’t fun and they aren’t cheap, but they are a normal part of owning a rental property, which is, by the way, the surefire way to build wealth for you and your family. So create a great vendor list and get ready, because the faster that you respond to repairs, the cheaper it’ll be to fix the problem and the more profitable it will be for you and your rental home business.

Next week, I’m going to show you exactly how a systematic approach will save you a ton of money and make your properties more profitable. To be alerted, hit the subscribe button below.

And if you have questions about anything you’ve heard here today, call me directly at 951-314-5402. I’m happy to share. You can also find valuable information on our website, dreambigpm.com. I’d love to hear some war stories. In the comments below, share one of your experiences dealing with damages to your property. We might use your story in a future video. And if you’d like our detailed wear and tear guide, which helps break down the difference between your expenses and someone else’s, email me at brian@dreambigpm.com and write “wear and tear” in the subject field. We’ll send you out a free copy. If you found the information you heard here today useful, please do us a favor: like and subscribe so that we can help others just like you. Don’t be accidental about your future. Be intentional to your success.


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