If you work with low-income tenants in San Jose — whether you’re a case manager, social worker, advocate, or service provider, the resources below are designed to help you deliver Legal First Aid®, support your clients through housing crises, and keep San Jose residents stably housed.
This toolkit contains curated resources, step-by-step guides, legal information, tools, FAQs, and more — all designed to help you deliver impactful, upstream legal support— no legal background required. Everything here is meant to help you identify legal red flags, navigate eviction risks, and connect clients to the support they need, when they need it most.
Use this toolkit to:
- Santa Clara County Court Record Retrieval Tool
- Tenant Power Toolkit
- Eviction Notice Types
- If You Get a Notice
- Eviction Overview
- Understand Eviction Procedures City of San Jose
- Ellis Act Fact Sheet City of San Jose
- Resources for San Jose Residential Tenants
- Sheriff Removal: Ask the Court for More Time to Move Out
- Motion to Set Aside (Relief from Default Judgment)
- Denial of Housing Application: Obtaining Your Consumer File
- California Alternate Rates for Energy (CARE) – Utility Assistance
- Relief for Energy Assistance through Community Help (REACH)
- Relocation Assistance: City of San Jose
- Rental Assistance: City of San Jose
- Tenant Protection Ordinance Fact Sheet City of San Jose
- City of San Jose Apartment Rent Ordinace Fact Sheet
- City of San Jose Mobilehome Rent Ordinance Fact Sheet
- City of San Jose Fact Sheets and Information on Housing Ordinances
- Residential Tenant Protections Programs City of Sunnyvale
- California Center for Movement Legal Services Immigration Discrimination Reporting Form (English)
- California Center for Movement Legal Services Immigration Discrimination Reporting Form (Spanish)
- Root & Rebound Tenant Protection Act Undocumented Tenant Rights
- Movement Legal California Tenant Rights for Immigrants (English + Spanish)
- California Civil Rights Department Fair Chance Resource
- California Civil Rights Department Fair Housing Resource
- Santa Clara County Project Sentinel Fair Housing Guides and FAQs
- California Civil Rights Department Child Care Providers Housing Law Protections Fact Sheet
- California Civil Rights Department Housing Discrimination Overview + Resources
- California Civil Rights Department California Fair Housing Laws Protect You from Disability Discrimination Fact Sheet
- Housing Discrimination Based on Disability – Your Rights and Options
- Housing and Reasonable Modifications for People with Disabilities FAQ
- Disability Rights California: Your Right to Reasonable Housing Accommodations Information + Video
- California Office of the Attorney General Civil Rights Enforcement Section’s Guide – Legal Rights of Persons with Disabilities: Disability Rights in Housing
- California Civil Rights Department Fair Housing Source of Income Resource
- Legal Link Voucher Discrimination FAQ
- City of San Jose Housing Payment Equality Ordinance FAQ
- Denial of Housing Application: Obtaining Your Consumer File
- California Civil Rights Department Fair Housing and Criminal History Factsheet
- California Civil Rights Department Know Your Top Fair Housing Rights
- Housing Discrimination + Protections for Survivors/Victims of Domestic Violence
- Housing Discrimination Due to National Origin: Resources for Immigrant Community
- Rental Application Denied Due to Tenant Screening Report
- California Civil Rights Department Discriminatory Housing Advertisement Reporting
- Template Letter for Section 8 Discrimination in the City of San Jose
- Santa Clara County Housing Authority Rental Assistance and the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA – for all genders) – includes links to the Notice of Occupancy Rights, Certification Form, Violence Against Women Emergency Transfer Plan (for all genders)
- Sample Letters to Dispute Iniformation on a Credit Report
- AB 1482: New Statewide Renter Protections Know Your Rights Video + Written FAQ
- Tenant Power Toolkit – Training Part 1
- Tenant Power Toolkit – Training Part 2
- Legal Link Housing Top Takeaways
- Know Your Rights San Jose Landlord-Tenant Law
- California Tenants: A Guide to Residential Tenants’ and Landlords’ Rights and Responsibilities
- California Attorney General Office Landlord-Tenant Issues FAQs
- California Department of Justice Know Your Rights as a California Tenant FAQ
- Renters’ Rights Under the Tenant Protection Act
- Santa Clara County Housing Authority Rules (Administrative Plan)
- Santa Clara County Housing Authority Housing Inspection Checklist
- Santa Clara County Housing Authority Re-Examination
- Santa Clara County Housing Authority Portability
- Santa Clara County Move Process with a Housing Choice Voucher (Section 8)
- Santa Clara County Housing Authority Self-Sufficiency Program for Voucher Participants
- Santa Clara County Housing Authority FAQ for Housing Choice Voucher (Section 8) Participants
- Mobile Home & Park Owner Resource Guide City of San Jose
- First Time Home Buyer Education
- Reverse Mortgage Counseling
- Post Home Purchase Counseling
- Foreclosure Prevention
- California Department of Justice Tenant Protection Act: Your Obligations as a Landlord or Property Manager FAQ
- Repair and Accessibility Modification for Low-Income Home Owners and Mobile Homes City of San Jose
Find Legal Referrals
This resource was made possible thanks to the generous support of the City of San Jose. Together, we are strengthening the frontline response to housing instability.
