Subletting in Los Angeles: A Guide for Students and Interns

Who Sublets in Los Angeles, and When

The big campuses are the University of Southern California next to Exposition Park, UCLA in Westwood, Loyola Marymount University in Westchester and Pepperdine University in Malibu.

Summer drives most sublets. Semester schools finish in May, so rooms near USC and LMU open from mid-May to mid-August. UCLA’s quarter calendar ends spring term in June and starts fall in late September, so Westwood sublets usually run mid-June to mid-September. Summer interns arrive in the same weeks.

The second wave is study abroad: a fall or spring semester at USC and LMU, or one or two quarters at UCLA. Check your own school’s calendar for exact dates before you set a move-out day.

Where Students and Interns Live

• Near USC: the blocks north and west of campus around Figueroa Street, Hoover Street and Vermont Avenue, close to the Jefferson/USC and Expo Park/USC stations on the Metro E Line.
• Near UCLA: Westwood Village and the streets just west of campus such as Gayley, Landfair and Strathmore, then Sawtelle and Palms a bus ride away.
• Near LMU: Westchester, Playa Vista and Playa del Rey, between the campus bluff and Ballona Creek.
• Near Pepperdine: Malibu along Pacific Coast Highway, or Calabasas over Malibu Canyon Road.
• Near the main office districts: Downtown, Koreatown and Hollywood on the Metro B and D lines; Culver City and Santa Monica on the E Line; Century City, Burbank and El Segundo mostly by bus or car.

Getting Around

LA Metro runs the trains and most buses. The E Line runs from Downtown past USC and Culver City to Santa Monica. UCLA has no Metro rail station yet, so Westwood relies on Metro buses, Santa Monica’s Big Blue Bus and Culver CityBus.

Be honest with yourself about commutes. If home and work are both near a rail line, you can skip a car. For LMU, Pepperdine, Burbank, El Segundo or anything across the hills, plan on a car and on traffic.

The Rules to Check Before You Sublet in Los Angeles

California has no single rule that lets every tenant sublet. The state’s California Tenants guide explains that your lease controls, that most leases require the landlord’s consent, and that you stay responsible for the rent and the unit while a subtenant is there. So read the lease and get approval in writing.

Short stays are a separate matter. The City of Los Angeles Home-Sharing Ordinance covers rentals of 30 consecutive days or less. Hosts must register with the city, the home must be their primary residence, renters need the landlord’s written approval, and units under the city’s Rent Stabilization Ordinance cannot be registered. A sublet of more than 30 days is not home-sharing, which is one more reason to book a full summer or term.

If your building is rent-stabilized, or you are unsure, the Los Angeles Housing Department answers tenant questions.

How to Sublet Your Place in Los Angeles

1. Read your lease for a subletting or assignment clause. Many Los Angeles leases ban subletting without written consent.
2. Ask your landlord or property manager in writing. Give your dates and say you will send the subtenant’s name. Keep the written approval.
3. Tell your roommates before you list. If they are on the lease, they usually need to agree too.
4. Set exact move-in and move-out dates that sit inside your own lease term.
5. Price it near your own rent. Add up what you pay each month for rent and utilities and start from that number.
6. Put the deal in writing: names, dates, rent, utilities, house rules, and what happens if plans change. Both of you sign and keep a copy.

Pick a subtenant on the stay only: dates, ability to pay, references, pets, smoking. It is illegal to choose or refuse someone because of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability or family status, and state and local laws protect more traits.

• How to Handle Your Sublet, Start to Finish
• Going Abroad: The Apartment Checklist

How to Find a Sublet in Los Angeles Without Getting Scammed

Decide on your commute first, then search by the campus or rail line you need. Start looking six to eight weeks before you arrive, and earlier for a summer stay.

Sublet Buddy lists sublets of 30 days or longer. Its listings are live in New York City today, and Los Angeles is on the way.

• See the place in person, or on a live video call where the person walks through it and shows the street outside.
• Ask whether the landlord has approved the sublet in writing, and ask to see that approval.
• Never pay a deposit or rent before you both sign a written agreement.
• Be wary of pressure: a price far below nearby places, a lister who cannot show the place, or a request to pay today by gift card, wire or crypto.

• How to Avoid Sublet Scams (Written for New York, but the Warning Signs Are the Same)
• Sublets in Los Angeles