Laws: What’s new, what’s different

Among the new and revised real estate laws that went into effect Jan. 1 and are of note to homeowners and renters:

* AB 2618 increases Small Claims Court awards from $5,000 to $7,500 for enforcement actions at common-interest developments that deal with monetary damages and certain landlord-tenant issues, among others.

* Before AB 1890, if a property were destroyed by a disaster, the owner had three years to purchase or rebuild a replacement property without a tax increase. Now the owner has five years to do so.