San Jose Mun. Code Chapter 17.23 § 17.23.1250

A. Just Cause Terminations. If a Landlord can show any of the following circumstances with respect to a termination of tenancy, the termination will qualify as a "Just Cause Termination."
1. Nonpayment of Rent. After being provided with written notice of the identity and mailing address of the Landlord, and the amount of rent due, the Tenant has failed to pay rent to which the Landlord is legally entitled pursuant to any written or oral rental agreement and under the provisions of state or local law, unless the Tenant has withheld rent pursuant to applicable law, and said failure has continued after service on the Tenant of a written notice setting forth the amount of rent then due and requiring it to be paid, within a period, specified in the notice, of not less than three days.
2. Material or Habitual Violation of the Tenancy.
a. The Tenant has failed to cure a violation of any material term of the rental agreement within a reasonable time after receiving written notice from the Landlord of the alleged violation or has committed Habitual violations of the rental agreement, but only if either clause (i) or (ii) applies:
i. The demand to cure is based on terms that are legal and have been accepted in writing by the Tenant or made part of the rental agreement; or
ii. The demand to cure is based on terms that were accepted by the Tenant or made part of the rental agreement after the initial creation of the tenancy, so long as the Landlord first notified the Tenant in writing that he or she need not accept such terms or agree to their being made part of the rental agreement.
b. The following potential violations of a tenancy can never be considered material or Habitual violations:
i. An obligation to surrender possession on proper notice as required by law.
ii. An obligation to limit occupancy when the additional Tenant(s) who join the Tenant Household are any of the following: a dependent child or foster child, a minor in the Tenant's care, the spouse, domestic partner, or parent (which terms may be further defined in the regulations adopted by the City Manager), of a Tenant; so long as the total number of adult Tenants in the unit does not exceed the greater of either the maximum number of individuals authorized in the rental agreement or two adults per bedroom, or in the case of a studio unit, two adults. The Landlord has the right to approve or disapprove a prospective additional Tenant who is not a dependent child or foster child, a minor in the Tenant's care, spouse, domestic partner, or parent of a Tenant, provided that the approval is not unreasonably withheld.
3. Substantial Damage to the Rental Unit. The Tenant, after written notice to cease and a reasonable time to cure, causes substantial damage to the Rental Unit, or common area of the structure or rental complex containing the Rental Unit beyond normal wear and tear, and refuses, after written notice, to pay the reasonable costs of repairing such damage and to cease engaging in the conduct identified in the notice to cease.
4. Refusal to Agree to a Like or New Rental Agreement. Upon expiration of a prior rental agreement the Tenant has refused to agree to a new rental agreement that contains provisions that are substantially identical to the prior rental agreement as may be further described in the regulations adopted by the City Manager, and that complies with local, state and federal laws.
5. Nuisance Behavior. The Tenant, after written notice to cease, continues to be so disorderly or to cause such a nuisance as to destroy the peace, quiet, comfort, or safety of the Landlord or other Tenants of the structure or rental complex containing the Rental Unit. Such nuisance or disorderly conduct includes violations of state and federal criminal law that destroy the peace, quiet, comfort, or safety of the Landlord or other Tenants of the structure or rental complex containing the Rental Unit, and may be further defined in the regulations adopted by the City Manager.
6. Refusing Access to the Unit. The Tenant, after written notice to cease and a reasonable time to cure, continues to refuse the Landlord reasonable access to the Rental Unit, so long as the Landlord is not abusing the right of access under California Civil Code section 1954, as amended.
7. Unapproved Holdover Subtenant. The Tenant holding over at the end of the term of the oral or written rental agreement is a subtenant who was not approved by the Landlord.
8. Substantial Rehabilitation of the Unit. The Landlord after having obtained all necessary permits from the City, seeks in good faith to undertake substantial repairs which are necessary to bring the property into compliance with applicable codes and laws affecting the health and safety of Tenants of the building, provided that:
a. The repairs costs not less than the product of ten (10) times the amount of the monthly rent times the number of Rental Units upon which such work is performed. For purposes of this subsection, the monthly rent for each Rental Unit shall be the average of the preceding twelve-month period; and
b. The repairs necessitate the relocation of the Tenant Household because the work will render the Rental Unit uninhabitable for a period of not less than thirty (30) calendar days; and
c. The Landlord gives advance notice to the Tenant of the ability to reoccupy the unit upon completion of the repairs at the same rent charged to the Tenant before the Tenant vacated the unit or, if requested by Tenant, the right of first refusal to any comparable vacant Rental Unit which has been offered at comparable rent owned by the Landlord; and
d. In the event the Landlord files a petition under the Apartment Rent Ordinance within six (6) months following the completion of the work, the Tenant shall be party to such proceeding as if he or she were still in possession, unless the Landlord shall submit with such application a written waiver by the Tenant of his or her right to reoccupy the premises pursuant to this subsection; and
e. The Landlord shall have provided relocation assistance as required by subsection B of Section 17.23.1250 , below.
9. Ellis Act Removal. The Landlord seeks in good faith to recover possession of the Rental Unit to remove the building in which the Rental Unit is located permanently from the residential rental market under the Ellis Act and, having complied in full with the Ellis Act and Ellis Act Ordinance, including the provision of relocation assistance as required by subsection B of Section 17.23.1250 , below.
10. Owner Move-In. The Owner seeks in good faith, honest intent, and without ulterior motive to recover possession for: (a) the Owner's own use and occupancy as the Owner's principal residence for a period of at least 36 consecutive months commencing within three months of vacancy; or (b) the principal residence of the Owner's spouse, domestic partner, parent(s), child or children, brother(s), or sister(s) (each an "authorized family member") for a period of at least 36 consecutive months and commencing within three months of vacancy, so long as the Rental Unit for the Owner's authorized family member is located in the same building as the Owner's principal residence and no other unit in the building is vacant. It shall be a rebuttable presumption that the Owner has acted in bad faith if the Owner or the Owner's qualified relative for whom the Tenant was evicted does not move into the Rental Unit within three months from the date of the Tenant's surrender of possession of the premises or occupy said unit as his/her principal residence for a period of at least thirty-six (36) consecutive months. The Owner shall have provided relocation assistance as required by subsection B of Section 17.23.1250 , below.
11. Order to Vacate. The Landlord seeks in good faith to recover possession of the Rental Unit in order to comply with a court or governmental agency's order to vacate, order to comply, order to abate, or any other City enforcement action or order that necessitates the vacating of the building in which the Rental Unit is located as a result of a violation of the San José Municipal Code or any other provision of law, and provides a notice of the right to reoccupy. The Landlord shall have provided relocation assistance as required by subsection B.3 of Section 17.23.1250 , below.
12. Vacation of Unpermitted Unit. The Landlord seeks in good faith to recover possession of an Unpermitted Unit in order to end the unpermitted use. The Landlord shall have provided relocation assistance as required by subsection B.3 of Section 17.23.1250 , below.
13. Criminal Activity.
a. The Tenant Household, after receiving a written notice to cure (which notice shall include the return provisions listed in subsection d below) by removing the Violating Tenant (as defined below) from the household, and, where necessary, amending the lease to remove the Violating Tenant's name, fails to do so within a reasonable time, by one of the following methods as further described in the regulations:
i. Filing a restraining order or providing evidence to the Landlord of similar steps being taken to remove the Violating Tenant from the household.
ii. Removing the Violating Tenant from the household and providing written notice to the landlord that the Violating Tenant has been removed.
b. For purposes of this subsection 13, a "Violating Tenant" shall mean an adult Tenant that is indicted by a grand jury or held to answer pursuant to Penal Code Section 872, as amended, for a serious felony as defined by Penal Code Section 1192.7(c), as amended, or a violent felony as defined by Penal Code Section 667.5(c), as amended, which occurred during the tenancy and within 1,000 feet of the premises on which the Rental Unit is located. The term "premises" shall mean "Lot," as defined in Section 20.200.660 of the San José Municipal Code.
c. The past criminal history of a Tenant shall not be a factor in determining whether the Tenant is a Violating Tenant.
d. If a Violating Tenant, as defined above, is acquitted from the charges or the charges are dismissed or reduced, he or she may return to the Rental Unit as a Tenant, so long as: 1) the Tenant Household still resides in the Rental Unit; and 2) the Tenant Household consents to the Violating Tenant's return.
B. Relocation Assistance.
1. Tenants who receive a Notice of Termination that relies on subsections A.8 or A.10 of Section 17.23.1250 as the just cause rationale to terminate the tenancy must receive, and the Landlord must provide the following relocation assistance to the Tenant Household. The relocation assistance must be provided to the Tenant Household concurrent with delivery of the Notice of Termination to the Tenant Household.
a. Relocation Assistance. An amount equal to the Base Assistance provided for in the Ellis Act Ordinance, as set by resolution of the City Council.
b. Refund of Security Deposit. Owner must refund to the Tenant Household any security deposit paid by the Tenant Household, provided, however, that the Owner may withhold any properly itemized deductions from the security deposit pursuant to California Civil Code section 1950.5, as amended.
2. Tenants who receive a Notice of Termination that relies on subsection A.9 of Section 17.23.140 as the just cause rationale to terminate the tenancy must have received, and the Landlord must have provided, all applicable Relocation Assistance provided for in the Ellis Act Ordinance.
3. Tenants who receive a Notice of Termination that relies on subsection A.11 or A.12 of Section 17.23.1250 as the just cause rationale to terminate the tenancy must receive, and the Landlord must provide, Relocation Assistance as defined in Part 11 of Chapter 17.20 , or if the unit is unpermitted, an amount equal to the Base Assistance provided for in the Ellis Act Ordinance.