The Assisted Living Admission Agreement in California: What to Read Before Signing

Assisted living communities and board and care homes are licensed in California as residential care facilities for the elderly (RCFEs). Health and Safety Code section 1569.880 defines the admission agreement as all the documents a resident or their representative must sign at the time of admission, or as a condition of it. House rules and fee schedules you have to sign are part of the contract.

You do not have to wait for move-in day to see it. Section 1569.881 requires every home to make blank, complete copies of its admission agreement available to the public immediately on request, at cost, allowing time for copying or mailing. The home must also post a complete copy, or a notice that copies are available, where the public can see it.

The law also requires type of at least 12 points and clear language using words with common, everyday meanings.

Section 1569.884 says the agreement shall include all of the following:

• A comprehensive description of the items and services covered by a single fee, such as a monthly fee for room, board and other services.
• A comprehensive description of, and the fee schedule for, everything not included in that single fee, and a statement that the resident will receive a monthly statement itemizing all separate charges.
• An explanation of third-party services related to the resident's service plan: how they are arranged, any restrictions, and who pays for them.
• A comprehensive description of billing and payment policies and procedures.
• The conditions under which rates may be increased.
• The home's policy on family visits and other communication with residents.
• The refund policy, including when advance monthly fees are returned if the resident dies.
• The conditions under which the agreement may be terminated.
• An explanation of the home's duty to prepare a relocation evaluation and a closure plan, and to give notice, if residents are evicted because the home closes or changes use.

State law does not set the price. It controls how fees are disclosed. A home may assess a separate charge for an item or service only if the admission agreement authorizes that charge, and Health and Safety Code section 1569.651 says any fee, whether charged before or after admission, must be clearly specified in the agreement.

Many homes charge a one-time amount at the start. The statute calls any application, processing, admission, entrance or community fee requested before admission a preadmission fee. A home may charge only one per admission. It must give a written statement describing the costs behind the fee and stating that the fee is refundable, with the refund conditions. A home may not require any preadmission fee or deposit from a person who receives SSI/SSP, and no home may ask for or accept a deposit against possible damages.

The table shows the refund schedule in section 1569.651 as it reads in 2026. A separate schedule applies when residents are evicted because a home closes. Which charges a family can ask about is covered in assisted living fees and what is negotiable.

Several sections limit what a home can put in the contract. The agreement may not include unlawful waivers of the home's liability for the health and safety or personal property of residents, or any provision the home knows or should know is deceptive or unlawful. Under the Resident's Bill of Rights, nothing a resident is required to sign for admission may make them waive benefits or rights the law gives them.

Eviction terms are tightly controlled. Section 1569.886 says the agreement may not include any ground for involuntary transfer or eviction unless it is specifically listed in state law or regulation, and must list the permitted justifications exactly as they are worded there. The grounds and notice periods are in California's assisted living eviction rules.

Section 1569.885 requires a copy of the applicable residents' rights to be attached, with information on reporting suspected or known abuse of an older or dependent adult. The agreement must tell the resident of the right to contact the Department of Social Services, the Long-Term Care Ombudsman, or both, about grievances. It must include a written notice with the local Ombudsman's current phone number, website and email address and the Community Care Licensing Division's website. If anyone is in immediate danger in a care home, call 911. Complaints about a licensed home go to Community Care Licensing. The rights themselves are summarized in resident rights in a California RCFE.

A separate law, section 1569.658, requires a home to give every resident or representative, on signing, a written disclosure of its average monthly rate increases for each of the previous three years. See how rate increases work.

The home keeps the signed original in the resident's file and must give the resident or representative a copy.

California Advocates for Nursing Home Reform (CANHR), a consumer group, calls the agreement a legal contract and suggests the steps below. For legal advice on a particular contract, speak with an elder law attorney.

1. 1

   Ask for a blank copy and take it home

   Read it away from the tour. Get every document it refers to, such as house rules and the visiting policy.

2. 2

   Find the base rate and what it covers

   Then find the fee schedule for everything else. CANHR notes that most homes combine a fixed rate with extra charges tied to a care level or point system, so ask how the assessment becomes a price.

3. 3

   Read the rate increase, refund and termination sections

   Note how much notice the resident must give to move out. CANHR says the agreement is ended by a 30-day written notice unless it sets a different period.

4. 4

   Look for an arbitration clause

   CANHR points out that more agreements now include a requirement to arbitrate all disputes. Ask an attorney what signing it would mean.

5. 5

   Check who is signing and in what role

   CANHR advises a person who signs for a resident to make sure they do not become personally responsible for the fees. An elder law attorney can review this.

Health and Safety Code section 1569.652 says a home may not require advance notice to end the agreement when a resident dies, and no fees may accrue once all of the resident's belongings are out of the unit. Fees paid in advance for the time after that must be refunded within 15 days after the property is removed.

Hamssa Benrekia is a senior living placement specialist in Torrance who helps families in the South Bay and Harbor area find licensed assisted living communities, board and care homes and memory care. She goes on tours with families and helps them talk terms with a home. She does not give legal advice. More topics are in the California Assisted Living Placement Guide. To talk about a search, contact Hamssa.