We rent out bedrooms with full-access to the home in a house we own but do not occupy. Each tenant is on a separate monthly rental agreement. One individual is disabled, and his rent has been far below market value. Market value in our neighborhood for house/bedroom rent is $500/month.

We raised the one tenant’s rent last year by $30 so he currently pays $300/month. We wanted to do this as of January 2009, but he prevailed upon our good nature to postpone it until March of 2009.

We want to raise his rent again, as of January 2010. He has been a tenant for over 3 years, so we know we have to give a 60-day notice.

We want to raise his rent by another $30/month, but from what we’ve read, we cannot raise it by $30 until March–i.e. in CA, raise the rent by 10% every 12 months, or by 5% every 6 months, correct??

Should we just raise his rent by $30 in January or follow the “absolute” letter of the law and wait until March? If we hadn’t been so softhearted, we’d raise his rent in January.

Thanks for any input.