California - Father/landlord demanding chores under threat of $400 rent or eviction - also paid half his property taxes/insurance for years
I'm a disabled tenant (on SSI) in California, living in a mobile home my father owns. We share space rent/utilities equally (~$360/month). No written lease, just a long-standing oral agreement.
Disclaimer: I used an AI to summarize this for me. I'm real and this situation is real.
Father/home owner recently left two written notices:
- First notice: Rent increase to $400+ utilities, explicitly mentioning I stopped doing chores. I simply avoided one task after he demanded it of me and because the grass wasn't long enough to weed eat, in my opinion.
- Second notice (yesterday): Says bills stay same IF I do chores on demand. If I refuse chores, I pay $400/month rent. "If you fail to do any of the items you will be escorted from here."
Additional context:
- I've historically paid half the home insurance and property taxes based on his promise I would eventually inherit the home
- Most recent insurance payment was $730, paid just before this conflict started
- He charged me $418 in February without explanation (lining up with his later demands/notes. previous months were $348-349)
- Has threatened eviction verbally before
- I have bank statements, photos of both notes, and a documented disability (depression) affecting task initiation/memory
Questions:
- Is tying rent to chores legal in CA?
- Can he threaten "escorted from here" over unfinished chores?
- Do the years of paying into home ownership (insurance/taxes) affect my rights?
- Disability protections given the chores are tasks I struggle with?
Posted Feb 28, 2026, 9:05 PM UTC
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