A new law requires a working fridge in all California apartments. Some landlords fought it

"Fridge-less apartments dotting the pricey California rental market will soon be a head-scratching relic. Beginning Jan. 1, landlords will be required to provide all apartments with a working stove and refrigerator thanks to a new state law. It marks the end of an unusual, decades-long phenomenon mostly in the Los Angeles area where some tenants have had to buy their own appliances after signing a lease."

"The law, Assembly Bill 628, takes effect Thursday, and of the numerous housing reform measures passed by the Legislature in 2025, is one of the more unusual ones. A working stove and a refrigerator are not luxuries, Assemblymember Tina McKinnor, a Democrat from Inglewood, said in a statement earlier this year after she introduced the bill. They are a necessary part of modern life. California has the fewest available apartments with refrigerators in the country, according to a 2022 report from the Los Angeles Times that was cited in the bill proposal."

"Apartments without the staple appliances will now be illegal unless they are part of housing with communal kitchens, single-room occupancy units or hotels. Tenant rights groups say the law will help reduce housing costs for low-income residents who have to pay for a refrigerator which can easily run in the hundreds of dollars in addition to the first month's rent and a deposit before moving in. To have an added cost of trying to buy a refrigerator and a stove is really economically unfeasible for many tenants, said Larry Gross, executive director of the Los Angeles housing advocacy group Coali"

California will require landlords to provide a working stove and refrigerator in most apartments starting Jan. 1 under Assembly Bill 628. The law ends a decades-long practice, concentrated in Los Angeles and Orange counties, where some tenants bought their own appliances after signing leases. Previous state requirements covered plumbing, heat and certain utilities but not appliances. Apartments without those staple appliances will be illegal except for housing with communal kitchens, single-room occupancy units, or hotels. Tenant advocates say the law will reduce move-in costs for low-income renters who otherwise must purchase expensive refrigerators and stoves.

Read at www.mercurynews.com