Landlord Asking Us To Move Out Weeks After Moving In For “plumbing Project”. Is This Legal? (california)

Location: CALIFORNIA

My partner and I just moved into an apartment in Fresno, CA on March 18, 2026. We signed a 12-month lease.

Less than a month later, we received a letter from management saying they need our unit vacant sometime between now and September to finish a major plumbing project.

They gave us a list of move-out dates and are offering a “move-out credit”:

• $500 if we move out in April–May
• $300 if June–July
• $200 if August or later

Important details:

• This is NOT cash. It’s just a credit toward move-out charges
• They are telling us to pick a date by April 30
• It’s “first come first serve”
• If we don’t follow the exact terms, we lose the credit

They also mentioned we might be able to transfer units, but availability is limited and if we go on a waitlist we lose the credit.

Here’s the issue:

• Our lease does NOT mention anything about being required to vacate for renovations or plumbing work
• We were not told before moving in that this would happen
• We literally just moved in weeks ago

From what I can tell, this doesn’t look like a formal eviction notice — more like an incentive to get us to leave voluntarily.

My questions:

1. Can they legally require us to move out mid-lease for this?
2. If the work makes the unit uninhabitable, are they required to relocate us or compensate us beyond this “credit”?
3. Is this something we should push back on or negotiate?

I’m trying to figure out if we actually have to comply or if they’re just hoping tenants leave voluntarily.

Any advice appreciated.