Under a new California law, landlords in the state are now required to provide working refrigerators and stoves in all their rental units.
The change is expected to have a significant impact on Los Angeles, which has a high concentration of fridge-free apartments.
Why It Matters
In the midst of a nationwide housing affordability crisis, tensions between landlords’ rights and tenants’ rights have taken center stage across the country, as politicians try to offer relief to struggling renters while keeping homeowners happy.
The new state law which was signed by California Governor Gavin Newsom last year and came into force on January 1, 2026, resolved a baffling, decades-long phenomenon that had long been criticized but never revised: the lack of an obligation for Golden State landlords to provide a working stove and fridge in their rental units…