Washington Landlord Compliance and Risk Essentials
Washington landlord law comes in layers. The Residential Landlord-Tenant Act, RCW 59.18, sets the statewide rules for screening, leases, deposits, rent increases, repairs and eviction, and cities such as Tacoma add requirements of their own. The rules also move: the deposit deadline went from 21 days to 30 in 2023, and on January 1, 2026, Tacoma replaced its two-notice rent increase rule with a single 180-day notice. Most compliance problems start with an old form or an outdated assumption, not bad intent.
Reviewed November 2026.
State law sets the floor. City rules add to it, and where both apply, a landlord has to meet both.
The Washington Landlord Compliance Framework
State Law Foundations
RCW 59.18 governs residential rentals across Washington: screening, leases, deposits, repairs, rent increases and eviction. A short list of arrangements falls outside it, such as hotels, institutions and certain employee or farmworker housing (RCW 59.18.040). Eviction procedure also runs through RCW 59.12.
Local Ordinances and City-Level Overlays
Cities can add longer notice periods, relocation payments, licensing and registration on top of state law. They cannot regulate the amount of rent (RCW 35.21.830). Where both apply, a landlord has to satisfy both, so the longer notice period or the added step controls in practice.
City rules follow city limits, not mailing addresses. Parkland and Spanaway homes with a Tacoma mailing address are outside Tacoma, so Tacoma’s rules don’t apply.
Fair Housing and Tenant Screening Overlay
Fair housing law applies at every stage, from the listing to the move-out. Washington also bars refusing or treating an applicant differently because of their source of income, such as a housing voucher, benefits or Social Security. Voucher amounts come off the rent before any income test is applied, and a violation can cost up to 4.5 times the monthly rent plus fees (RCW 59.18.255).
Written criteria applied the same way to every applicant, with records of each decision, are the core defense.
What Changed in 2025 and 2026
Several rules changed in the 2025 and 2026 legislative sessions, and some of them start on later dates.
Since June 11, 2026, a landlord can’t ban or charge for portable air conditioners or heat pumps except in limited cases (for example, a working heat pump is already installed, or a window unit would block an exit or can’t be secured), and any limits on window units have to be spelled out in the lease (RCW 59.18.740). The Eviction Resolution Pilot Program that once came before most nonpayment cases expired July 1, 2023.
Ending a Tenancy: Just Cause Rules
Under RCW 59.18.650, a landlord needs one of the causes the statute lists to evict, to refuse to continue a tenancy, or to end a month-to-month tenancy. A lease ending is not a cause by itself. Only two kinds of lease can end at the end of the term without a cause:
- A first lease of 6 to 12 months that would otherwise roll to month-to-month, ended at the close of that initial term with at least 60 days’ written notice.
- A fixed-term lease that does not roll over, where the first lease was 12 months or longer (or every lease since the start has run 6 months or more, back to back), the tenancy has never been month-to-month, and the landlord gives at least 60 days’ written notice.
Every other fixed-term lease converts to month-to-month at the end of its term and then needs a listed cause. Some cities narrow these routes: Federal Way requires a renewal offer, and SeaTac and Burien list their own causes for ending a tenancy, so in those cities a landlord-tenant attorney can confirm whether a lease can end at its term.
Common causes carry their own notice periods: 14 days for unpaid rent and 10 days to cure a lease violation. An owner move-in or the sale of a single-family home takes at least 90 days’ notice and comes with conditions. The owner or an immediate family member has to intend in good faith to live there as a principal residence, and the law presumes bad faith if no one moves in and stays 60 days in a row within 90 days after the tenant leaves. A sale requires listing the home at a reasonable price with a real estate agency or on the MLS within 30 days after the tenant leaves. Neither reason ends a fixed-term lease before its end date without the tenant’s written agreement and at least 60 days to move.
Each notice has to state the facts behind the cause and, since July 27, 2025, the date by which the tenant must move out or comply. Notices are served under RCW 59.12.040. A wrongful eviction exposes the landlord to the greater of the tenant’s economic and noneconomic damages or three times the monthly rent, plus attorneys’ fees and court costs.
Tenant Screening and Leasing Compliance
Disclosure of Screening Criteria
Before obtaining any information about an applicant, a landlord has to tell them in writing, or by posting, what types of information will be checked, what criteria can lead to a denial, the screening company’s name and address and the applicant’s rights if a consumer report is used, and whether the landlord accepts a comprehensive reusable tenant screening report (RCW 59.18.257).
A landlord with a rental website states on the property’s home page whether it accepts reusable reports. Screening charges are limited to actual cost, and a denial, or an approval with conditions, needs a written adverse action notice.
Application Review and Decision-Making
Base each decision on the criteria you disclosed, and give the reasons in any adverse action notice. State law limits what screening companies may report, such as adult records more than 7 years old and juvenile records once the person turns 21 (RCW 19.182.040). A landlord may not refuse to rent because an applicant is a victim of domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking (RCW 59.18.580).
Tacoma goes further and limits how landlords use criminal history: no blanket bans, an individual assessment, and no denial based only on a misdemeanor sentenced more than 3 years before or a felony sentenced more than 7 years before (TMC 1.95.035).
Lease Agreements and Required Disclosures
At signing, state law calls for a written lease if any deposit is collected, a signed move-in condition checklist, a deposit receipt, a fire safety notice signed by both parties, Department of Health mold information, and the landlord’s name and address (RCW 59.18.060, .260, .270). If the person named as landlord doesn’t live in Washington, the tenant also gets the name of an agent who lives in the county to receive notices and court papers. Our guide to renting out a home on PCS orders covers managing a Washington rental from another duty station. Nonrefundable fees have to be in the written lease and marked nonrefundable, or they are treated as a refundable deposit (RCW 59.18.285).
For a home built before 1978, federal law requires the lead paint disclosure and EPA pamphlet before the lease is signed (40 CFR 745). For leases entered after December 31, 2026, tenants also get flood risk and renter’s insurance disclosures. In Tacoma, the City’s tenant rights summary goes out with every lease offer, with a signed receipt.
Rent Increases, Notices, and Entry Rights
The 2026 and 2027 Rent Caps and Notice Rules
The Department of Commerce publishes the statewide cap each year under RCW 59.18.700: 9.683% for 2026 and 10% for 2027, in any 12-month period. A unit whose first certificate of occupancy was issued 12 or fewer years before the notice date is exempt, which is one of several exemptions in RCW 59.18.710.
- First-year freeze. No increase during the first 12 months of a tenancy.
- Notice period. At least 90 days’ written notice, and no increase before the current lease term ends (RCW 59.18.140). Income-based subsidized tenancies use 30 days.
- Required form. A notice substantially the same as the state’s Rent and Fee Increase Notice to Tenants (RCW 59.18.720).
- Service. Under RCW 59.12.040: hand it to the tenant; or leave it with a person of suitable age and discretion at the home and mail a copy; or, when no one can be found, post it on the premises, hand a copy to any resident there, and mail a copy. Mail from inside Washington. Certified mail is no longer required.
An increase that breaks these rules can cost the excess rent collected, up to three months of the unlawful rent or fees, and the tenant’s attorneys’ fees, and the Attorney General can seek up to $7,500 per violation. Tacoma, Olympia, SeaTac, Auburn and unincorporated King County require longer notice for some or all increases. Our guide to raising the rent in Washington in 2027 covers each city’s rules and how to count the days.
Tenant Entry and Access Rules
A landlord needs at least 2 days’ written notice to enter, or 1 day to show the unit to a prospective buyer or tenant. Entry has to be at a reasonable time, and the notice gives the date and time, or a window, plus a phone number the tenant can call to object or reschedule (RCW 59.18.150).
Entry without consent is allowed in an emergency or after abandonment. After one written warning, each further violation can cost up to $100 plus fees.
Security Deposits and Move-Out Accounting
Move-In Documentation Standards
No deposit may be collected without a written lease and a move-in checklist that describes the condition of the unit, covering at least walls, flooring, furniture and appliances, signed and dated by both parties with a copy to the tenant (RCW 59.18.260). Collecting a deposit without one makes the landlord liable for the full deposit.
If the move-in checklist didn’t reasonably record the condition of a fixture, appliance or furnishing, the landlord can’t deduct for repairing or replacing it (RCW 59.18.280). In Tacoma, Auburn, SeaTac and Burien, the checklist also covers countertops and drapes.
Deposit Handling and Banking Disclosures
Deposits go promptly into a trust account at a financial institution or licensed escrow agent located in Washington. The tenant gets a written receipt and written notice of the institution’s name, address and location, and of any later change (RCW 59.18.270).
On written request, a tenant can pay deposits, nonrefundable fees and last month’s rent in installments with no added fees or interest: three equal monthly payments for a term of 3 months or more, two for shorter terms, on a written schedule both sides sign. This doesn’t apply when deposits and fees total 25% or less of the first month’s rent and last month’s rent isn’t collected up front (RCW 59.18.610). Some cities, Tacoma included, allow up to six installments.
Move-Out Timelines and Itemization
Within 30 days after the tenant moves out, the landlord sends a full and specific statement of anything kept from the deposit, with copies of estimates or invoices, or for in-house work the receipts, time spent and hourly rate, along with any refund (RCW 59.18.280).
Normal wear and tear cannot be charged. Missing the deadline or the documentation can cost the landlord the full deposit, and an intentional refusal up to twice the deposit.
Nonpayment and Eviction Risk Management
Late Fees and Payments
No late fee may be charged on rent paid within 5 days of the due date (RCW 59.18.170). A tenant whose main income is a monthly government payment can ask in writing to move the due date up to 5 days later. Every payment goes to rent first (RCW 59.18.283).
Late fees are not rent, so they cannot go in a 14-day notice, and in an eviction judgment or reinstatement they are limited to $75 total (RCW 59.18.410).
Notice to Pay or Vacate Requirements
Unpaid rent starts with a 14-day notice in substantially the statutory form, which itemizes rent and recurring charges by month and carries the state’s built-in resource information (RCW 59.18.057). It is served the same three ways as other notices under RCW 59.12.040, and when it is mailed, five more days pass before a case can be filed.
In Tacoma, the City’s resource summary goes with it. A notice in the wrong form, or not served correctly, can defeat the case.
Eviction Process Overview
After the notice period, the case moves through a summons in the statutory form and a complaint, a show-cause hearing, and a writ of restitution, which the sheriff cannot carry out for 3 days after serving it (RCW 59.18.365, .370, .390). Courts appoint counsel for qualifying low-income tenants (RCW 59.18.640).
A tenant can reinstate the tenancy in a nonpayment case by paying the amount owed before judgment or within 5 court days after it, or up to the eviction date with a pledge letter from a government or nonprofit program. The landlord has to accept a qualifying pledge of emergency rental assistance and pause the case while it’s paid (RCW 59.18.410).
Maintenance, Repairs, and Habitability Standards
Habitability Thresholds and Health Standards
A landlord has to keep the rental fit to live in, which RCW 59.18.060 spells out: codes that affect health and safety, a sound and weathertight structure, heat and hot water, working supplied appliances and fixtures, locks, and pest control at the start of the tenancy, and during it in multifamily buildings.
Repair Timelines
After written notice from the tenant, the landlord has to start the repair within 24 hours for no hot or cold water, heat or electricity, or a condition imminently hazardous to life; within 72 hours for a supplied refrigerator, range and oven, or major plumbing fixture; and within 10 days for everything else (RCW 59.18.070).
Tenant Remedies
When a repair doesn’t start in time, a tenant who is current on rent can give the landlord a good-faith estimate, then hire the work and deduct up to two months’ rent per repair and two months’ rent in total over any 12 months. Alternatively, the tenant can do work inside the unit that doesn’t need a licensed contractor and deduct up to one month’s rent per repair and one month in total over 12 months (RCW 59.18.100). Either way, the landlord gets a chance to inspect the completed work. A lawful deduction is not unpaid rent, so treating it as nonpayment backfires. Our guide to maintenance and repair standards goes further.
City Rules in Our Service Area
These jurisdictions in the RPM Today service area add landlord rules on top of state law. Each rule applies inside its city limits or, for King County, in unincorporated areas only.
- Tacoma: 180-day increase notice, relocation assistance, 1.5% late fee limit, move-in cost caps, winter eviction ban, licensing (TMC 1.95, 1.100, 6B)
- Olympia: 120 or 180 days’ notice for larger increases; relocation assistance; $10 monthly late fee cap; deposit or last month’s rent capped at one month’s rent; pet deposits capped at 25% of rent; registration, a business license and inspections every 5 years; no increase with an overdue inspection or open repairs (OMC 5.82)
- SeaTac: 120 or 180 days’ notice for larger increases; just cause eviction; late fees capped at 2% of rent; move-in costs capped at one month’s rent, in 6 installments on terms of 6 months or more; business license, with no eviction from an unlicensed unit; no increase with habitability defects (SMC 4.05, 5.05)
- Auburn: 120 days’ notice for an increase over 5%; $10 monthly late fee cap; move-in costs capped at one month’s rent, with a six-month payment plan offered (ACC 5.23.040)
- Burien: Just cause eviction; $10 monthly late fee cap; move-in costs in 6 installments on terms of 6 months or more; City resource summary with eviction notices; rental housing inspection program (BMC 5.62, 5.63)
- Federal Way: Good cause needed to evict, with 120 days’ notice for an owner move-in or taking a unit off the market, and no separate cause for selling, so an owner selling there should talk to a landlord-tenant attorney before giving notice; after an owner move-in, the owner or family has to live there at least 90 days in a row within the 120 days after the tenant leaves, and the cause can be used once in 36 months; renewal offer 60 to 90 days before a lease term ends, unless the lease rolls to month-to-month; notices under the ordinance include a set veterans resources statement in bold type of at least 16 points (FWRC 20.05)
- Unincorporated King County: 120 days’ notice for an increase over 3%; just cause eviction; late fees capped at 1.5% of rent; move-in costs capped at one month’s rent, in 6 installments; no increase while reported defects stand (KCC 12.25)
Other cities in the service area can have rules of their own, such as business licensing, so check the city’s code for each property.
Local Compliance Considerations: Tacoma Example
Tacoma Ordinance 29086, passed December 9, 2025, rewrote parts of the Rental Housing Code (TMC 1.95) and the Landlord Fairness Code (TMC 1.100) effective January 1, 2026. These rules apply inside city limits in addition to state law. The Landlord Fairness Code says state law governs where the two conflict (TMC 1.100.100).
- Relocation assistance: the tenant asks for it after deciding to move rather than pay the increase: 2 months’ rent for 5% or more, 2.5 months over 7.5%, 3 months over 10%. A tenant who doesn’t move out by the end of the lease period, or who signs a new lease, repays it within 10 days. It is not owed when the landlord lives on the same site and it has four or fewer units, when the tenant has lived there less than six months, or when the landlord temporarily rents out their principal residence while away on active-duty military service.
- Winter ban and school year: unpaid rent and lease violations are not exceptions to the winter ban, and refusing to offer a new lease counts as an eviction (TMC 1.100.015, 1.100.065). During the Tacoma Public Schools year, households with a child, a student or an educator also have a defense to eviction (TMC 1.100.060).
- Late fees: no other late charges are allowed, including notice service, court costs or attorneys’ fees. In an eviction judgment, the state’s $75 total limit on late fees still applies.
- Licensing as a precondition: without the business license and each unit registered and certified as meeting RCW 59.18.060, a landlord cannot serve a rent increase notice or a notice to vacate, or evict (TMC 1.95.060, 1.95.070, 1.95.090). Tacoma has no routine rental inspection program; inspections apply to properties placed on a provisional rental license after code violations (TMC 6B.165).
- Screening: a landlord may not require a Social Security number, and an income test cannot exceed 3 times the rent, or 2.5 times when the rent is at or above HUD’s fair market rent, counting all sources of income (TMC 1.95.035).
- Repairs and increases: no rent increase while a properly reported habitability defect is unresolved (TMC 1.100.030).
- Notices: the City’s resource summary goes with every notice under RCW 59.12.030, including 14-day, 10-day and 3-day notices, and with every rent increase notice (TMC 1.95.030, 1.95.060).
- Penalties: Landlord Fairness Code violations carry penalties of $500 to five times the monthly rent per violation. Unpaid relocation assistance carries at least three times the assistance owed, and illegal rent at least three times the monthly rent, plus damages and attorneys’ fees. A violation is also a defense to eviction (TMC 1.100.080).
Tacoma’s new property maintenance code, Ordinance 29125, applies from January 1, 2027.
Records That Back Up Each Decision
Several rules put the documentation on the landlord: deposit deductions need a checklist and invoices (RCW 59.18.280), and repairs have to be completed promptly once started (RCW 59.18.070). Records also matter if a tenant claims retaliation. An eviction, rent increase, cut in services or added obligation within 90 days after a tenant’s good-faith complaint to a government agency, or after the tenant exercises rights under the Residential Landlord-Tenant Act, is presumed retaliatory. The landlord can rebut that, and the presumption reverses if the tenant was behind on rent or in breach when the notice was given (RCW 59.18.240, .250). Keep applications and written criteria, adverse action notices, signed checklists and photos, every notice with its proof of service, repair requests with response times, and deposit statements with invoices. A landlord has 3 years to sue for damage beyond the deposit on leases that began on or after July 23, 2023.
The Cost of Compliance
Compliance costs money: maintenance on schedule, current forms, legal review and the systems that track deadlines. Those costs are usually smaller than the alternatives, which include refunded deposits, damages of several months’ rent, cases lost on a defective notice, and longer vacancies.
What RPM Today Handles
On full management, RPM Today handles these day-to-day steps:
- Written screening criteria and disclosures, consistent decisions, and adverse action notices.
- Lease forms reviewed as new lease rules and disclosures take effect.
- Move-in checklists with photos, deposits held in trust, and itemized move-out statements with invoices on the state’s 30-day timeline.
- A renewal calendar set to each city’s notice period, the state and city forms, and proof of service kept on file.
- Repair requests logged and dispatched against the 24-hour, 72-hour and 10-day clocks.
- City business licenses and rental registrations kept current where a city requires them.
With lease-only service, we screen and place the tenant and prepare the lease, and the ongoing management stays with the owner. For rent increases in detail, see our guide to raising the rent in Washington in 2027. Rules change, and some cities add rules of their own on top of state law. For a specific property, a landlord-tenant attorney can confirm what applies.
Stay Current With Washington Landlord-Tenant Law
Two more rules start in 2027: flood and insurance disclosures for leases entered after December 31, 2026, and smart lock rules from January 1, 2027. RPM Today updates its leases, notices and calendars as new requirements take effect.
