California should i pay rent to landlord in short-sale property... he has not paid morgage in at least 5months and is short sell

As long as the owner is still entitled to possession, he can evict you for failure to pay rent (unless the bank invokes the assignment of rents clause found in most deeds - in that case, the bank would be entitled to rents and you'd be required to pay them. in any case, the point is that you're not entitled to live the for free).

The short answer to your question is that just because the owner is in foreclosure proceedings does not mean you get a free ride. Of course, there may be other facts and circumstances specific to your case that alter the analysis.

If he chooses to evict, your timeline is likely something like this:

1) Serve 3 day notice
2) Once 3 days expire, file for eviction (unlawful detainer)
3) you have 5 days to answer
4) if you don't answer, he takes your default, gets writ of possession, and has sheriff post notice on your door
5) couple days later, you're out.

This process can take as little as 2 weeks if everything is done perfectly.