1
Plaintiff North 7th Street Associates appeals the unlawful detainer summary judgment
entered in favor of defendant Guillermo Constante. Plaintiff’s principal contention is that it
was entitled to recover possession of the premises, even though it could not be awarded past-
due rent because the premises did not have the required permits or certificate of occupancy.
We affirm the judgment for the reasons discussed below.
BACKGROUND
On November 3, 2014, plaintiff filed an unlawful detainer complaint alleging the
following: that on an unknown date, defendant took possession of the premises at
1442 Alvarado Terrace, #2, in Los Angeles, pursuant to an oral month-to-month rental
agreement; that defendant agreed to pay $166.95 monthly on the first of each month; that
defendant was served with a three-day notice to pay or quit, alleging past-due rent of $739.35;
and that the three-day notice period expired on August 25, 2014, without defendant paying the
arrearage or vacating the premises. Plaintiff sought possession of the premises, forfeiture of the
rental agreement, past-due rent, damages, and attorney fees.
On November 12, 2014, defendant filed an answer generally denying the allegations of
the complaint. The following day, he filed an amended answer which alleged various
affirmative defenses, including that the notice overstated the amount of past-due rent, and that
the eviction failed to comply with several provisions of the Los Angeles Rent Stabilization
Ordinance (LARSO).
On December 22, 2014, defendant filed a motion for summary judgment in which he
contended that the three-day notice overstated the amount of back rent because defendant had
made but not been given proper credit for past payments, and because the rent had been
increased in violation of LARSO. Plaintiff filed an opposition, and the motion was heard and
denied on December 30, 2014.
On April 9, 2015, defendant filed a second motion for summary judgment that is the
subject of this appeal.1 In his motion, defendant argued that the undisputed facts established