The law specifically excludes discounts in fact:

" In determining the lowest gross rental amount pursuant to this section, any rent discounts, incentives, concessions, or credits offered by the owner of such unit of residential real property and accepted by the tenant shall be excluded. "

Civil code section 1947.12.

Seems like a loophole ripe for abuse.

What would happen if you included discounts as a part of rent control? I think you'd find more landlord's saying "no" when asked for a rent decrease.

Just like everything else, it's a two way conversation. The discounts have to happen with the tenant's knowledge and agreement. If you don't like it don't rent from a landlord who plays those games. If every landlord is playing extreme games with discounts to game the rent control law, it only points to the deeper problems that we all know exist but refuse to fix.

I'll rent to you at $5000 a month with a $4k discount month to month. That discount is renewable solely at managements discretion after 12 months. Seems egregious.

Yeah, and if someone made me that offer on my current ($2k/month) apartment, I would turn it down despite it being a 50% discount because I don't want the uncertainty of having to move in a year. This is not a problem if both parties know up front. The only way it becomes a problem is if I think I'm renting an apartment for $1k/month and then a year later my landlord says "Oh, actually your rent was $5000/month but you had the $4000/month move-in discount for the first year, your rent is now $5250/month".

Right but when the market becomes red hot again why would they not? I think this will only impact units that fall under rent control more generally though.

It's almost as if the law was amended by real estate lobbyists...