Condominium construction

AN ACT Relating to increasing homeownership opportunities by 1
simplifying condominium construction statutes; amending RCW 2
64.90.670, 64.90.685, 64.55.100, 64.50.020, 64.55.005, 64.55.005, and 3
64.90.675; providing an effective date; and providing an expiration 4
date. 5
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:6
Sec. 1. RCW 64.90.670 and 2019 c 238 s 102 are each amended to 7
read as follows: 8
(1) A declarant and any dealer warrants to a purchaser of a 9
condominium unit that the unit will be in at least as good condition 10
at the earlier of the time of the conveyance or delivery of 11
possession as it was at the time of contracting, except for 12
reasonable wear and tear and damage by casualty or condemnation.13
(2) ((A)) (a) If a condominium unit is part of a common interest 14
community organized under this chapter and created prior to the 15
effective date of this section, a declarant and any dealer impliedly 16
warrants to a purchaser of ((a)) the condominium unit that the unit 17
and the common elements in the condominium are suitable for the 18
ordinary uses of real estate of its type and that any improvements 19
made or contracted for by such declarant or dealer will be:20
(((a))) (i) Free from defective materials; 21
H-0372.1
HOUSE BILL 1403
State of Washington 69th Legislature 2025 Regular Session
By Representatives Taylor, Connors, Duerr, Jacobsen, Peterson, Reed,
Barkis, Rule, Doglio, Tharinger, Salahuddin, Ormsby, Ryu, Entenman,
Street, and Hill
Read first time 01/20/25. Referred to Committee on Civil Rights &
Judiciary.
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(((b))) (ii) Constructed in accordance with engineering and 1
construction standards, including applicable building codes, 2
generally accepted in the state of Washington at the time of 3
construction; and 4
(((c))) (iii) Constructed in a workmanlike manner.5
(b) If a condominium unit is part of a common interest community 6
created on or after the effective date of this section, a declarant 7
and any dealer impliedly warrants to a purchaser of the condominium 8
unit that the unit and the common elements in the condominium are 9
suitable for the ordinary uses of real estate of its type and that 10
any improvements made or contracted for by such declarant or dealer 11
will be:12
(i) Free from defective materials;13
(ii) Constructed in accordance with the approved plans, 14
specifications, and applicable building codes in effect at the time 15
of construction; and16
(iii) Constructed in a workmanlike manner. For purposes of this 17
subsection (2)(b)(iii), "workmanlike manner" means the degree of care 18
that a reasonably prudent contractor licensed in the state of 19
Washington would exercise under the same or similar circumstances.20
(3) A declarant and any dealer warrants to a purchaser of a 21
condominium unit that may be used for residential use that an 22
existing use, continuation of which is contemplated by the parties, 23
does not violate applicable law at the earlier of the time of 24
conveyance or delivery of possession. 25
(4) Warranties imposed under this section may be excluded or 26
modified as specified in RCW 64.90.675. 27
(5) For purposes of this section, improvements made or contracted 28
for by an affiliate of a declarant are made or contracted for by the 29
declarant. 30
(6) Any conveyance of a condominium unit transfers to the 31
purchaser all of a declarant's or dealer's implied warranties of 32
quality. 33
(7)(a) In a proceeding for breach of any of the obligations 34
arising under this section, the purchaser must show that the alleged 35
breach has adversely affected or will adversely affect the 36
performance of that portion of the unit or common elements alleged to 37
be in breach. Nothing in this section limits the ability of a board 38
to bring claims on behalf of two or more unit owners pursuant to RCW 39
64.90.405(2)(d). 40
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(b) To establish an adverse effect on performance, the purchaser 1
is required to prove that the alleged breach: 2
(i) Is more than technical; 3
(ii) Is significant to a reasonable person; and4
(iii) Has caused or will cause physical damage to the unit or 5
common elements; has materially impaired the performance of 6
mechanical, electrical, plumbing, elevator, or similar building 7
equipment; or presents an actual, unreasonable safety risk to the 8
occupants of the condominium. 9
(8) Proof of breach of any obligation arising under this section 10
is not proof of damages. Damages awarded for a breach of a warranty 11
arising under subsection (2) of this section are the reasonable cost 12
of repairs. However, if it is established that the cost of such 13
repairs is clearly disproportionate to the loss in market value 14
caused by the breach, damages are limited to the loss in market 15
value. 16
Sec. 2. RCW 64.90.685 and 2018 c 277 s 418 are each amended to 17
read as follows: 18
(1) ((A)) Except as otherwise provided in subsection (3) of this 19
section, a declarant, association, unit owner, or any other person 20
subject to this chapter may bring an action to enforce a right 21
granted or obligation imposed under this chapter or the governing 22
documents. The court may award reasonable attorneys' fees and costs 23
to the substantially prevailing party. 24
(2) ((Parties)) Except as otherwise provided in subsection (3) of 25
this section, parties to a dispute arising under this chapter or the 26
governing documents may agree at any time to resolve the dispute by 27
any form of binding or nonbinding alternative dispute resolution.28
(3) An action commenced under RCW 64.90.680 must be arbitrated 29
pursuant to RCW 64.55.100 if:30
(a) A condominium unit is part of a common interest community 31
created on or after the effective date of this section;32
(b) The sole relief sought is a money judgment; and33
(c) No party asserts a claim in excess of $500,000, exclusive of 34
interests and costs.35
Sec. 3. RCW 64.55.100 and 2005 c 456 s 11 are each amended to 36
read as follows: 37
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(1) ((If)) (a) Except as otherwise provided in (b) of this 1
subsection, if the declarant, an association, or a party unit owner 2
demands an arbitration by filing such demand with the court not less 3
than thirty and not more than ninety days after filing or service of 4
the complaint, whichever is later, the parties shall participate in a 5
private arbitration hearing. The declarant, the association, and the 6
party unit owner do not have the right to compel arbitration without 7
giving timely notice in compliance with this subsection. Unless 8
otherwise agreed by the parties, the arbitration hearing shall 9
commence no more than fourteen months from the later of the filing or 10
service of the complaint. 11
(b) Any claim subject to this chapter must be arbitrated pursuant 12
to this section if:13
(i) The claim relates to a condominium unit in a common interest 14
community created on or after the effective date of this section;15
(ii) The sole relief sought is a money judgment; and16
(iii) No party asserts a claim in excess of $500,000, exclusive 17
of interest and costs.18
(2) Unless otherwise agreed by the parties, claims that in 19
aggregate are for less than one million dollars shall be heard by a 20
single arbitrator and all other claims shall be heard by three 21
arbitrators. As used in this chapter, arbitrator also means 22
arbitrators where applicable. 23
(3) Unless otherwise agreed by the parties, the court shall 24
appoint the arbitrator, who shall be a current or former attorney 25
with experience as an attorney, judge, arbitrator, or mediator in 26
construction defect disputes involving the application of Washington 27
law. 28
(4) Upon conclusion of the arbitration hearing, the arbitrator 29
shall file the decision and award with the clerk of the superior 30
court, together with proof of service thereof on the parties. Within 31
twenty days after the filing of the decision and award, any aggrieved 32
party may file with the clerk a written notice of appeal and demand 33
for a trial de novo in the superior court on all claims between the 34
appealing party and an adverse party. As used in this section, 35
"adverse party" means the party who either directly asserted or 36
defended claims against the appealing party. The demand shall 37
identify the adverse party or parties and all claims between those 38
parties shall be included in the trial de novo. The right to a trial 39
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de novo includes the right to a jury, if demanded. The court shall 1
give priority to the trial date for the trial de novo.2
(5) If the judgment for damages, not including awards of fees and 3
costs, in the trial de novo is not more favorable to the appealing 4
party than the damages awarded by the arbitrator, not including 5
awards of fees and costs, the appealing party shall pay the 6
nonappealing adverse party's costs and fees incurred after the filing 7
of the appeal, including reasonable attorneys' fees so incurred.8
(6) If the judgment for damages, not including awards of fees and 9
costs, in the trial de novo is more favorable to the appealing party 10
than the damages awarded by the arbitrator, not including awards of 11
fees and costs, then the court may award costs and fees, including 12
reasonable attorneys' fees, incurred after the filing of the request 13
for trial de novo in accordance with applicable law; provided if such 14
a judgment is not more favorable to the appealing party than the most 15
recent offer of judgment, if any, made pursuant to RCW 64.55.160, the 16
court shall not make an award of fees and costs to the appealing 17
party. 18
(7) If a party is entitled to an award with respect to the same 19
fees and costs pursuant to this section and RCW 64.55.160, then the 20
party shall only receive an award of fees and costs as provided in 21
and limited by RCW 64.55.160. Any award of fees and costs pursuant to 22
subsections (5) or (6) of this section is subject to review in the 23
event of any appeal thereof otherwise permitted by applicable law or 24
court rule. 25
Sec. 4. RCW 64.50.020 and 2023 c 337 s 4 are each amended to 26
read as follows: 27
(1) In every construction defect action brought against a 28
construction professional, the claimant shall, no later than 45 days 29
before filing an action, serve written notice of claim on the 30
construction professional. 31
(a) The notice of claim shall state that the claimant asserts a 32
construction defect claim against the construction professional and 33
shall describe the claim in reasonable detail sufficient to determine 34
the general nature of the defect. 35
(b) If the claimant is a condominium association created after 36
July 23, 2023, the written notice of claim shall include a written 37
report from a construction defect professional. In addition to 38
describing the claim in reasonable detail sufficient to determine the 39
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general nature of the defect the written report shall state the 1
construction defect professional's qualifications, the manner and 2
type of inspection upon which the report was based, and the general 3
location of the defect. 4
(2) Within 14 days after service of the notice of claim, the 5
construction professional may serve a written response demanding a 6
meeting with the claimant and its expert, including the construction 7
defect professional who authored the report required in subsection 8
(1)(b) of this section to confer regarding the report and its 9
contents. The meeting shall take place within 14 days of service of 10
the construction professional's demand or at such later date as 11
mutually agreed to by the parties. 12
(3) Within 14 days after the meeting referenced in subsection (2) 13
of this section or, in the absence of a demand for such meeting, 14
within 21 days after service of the notice of claim, whichever is 15
later, the construction professional shall serve a written response 16
on the claimant by registered mail or personal service. The written 17
response shall: 18
(a) Propose to inspect the residence that is the subject of the 19
claim and to complete the inspection within a specified time frame. 20
The proposal shall include the statement that the construction 21
professional shall, based on the inspection, offer to remedy the 22
defect, compromise by payment, or dispute the claim;23
(b) Offer to compromise and settle the claim by monetary payment 24
without inspection. A construction professional's offer under this 25
subsection (3)(b) to compromise and settle a homeowner's claim may 26
include, but is not limited to, an express offer to purchase the 27
claimant's residence that is the subject of the claim, and to pay the 28
claimant's reasonable relocation costs; or 29
(c) State that the construction professional disputes the claim 30
and will neither remedy the construction defect nor compromise and 31
settle the claim. 32
(4)(a) If the construction professional disputes the claim or 33
does not respond to the claimant's notice of claim within the time 34
stated in subsection (3) of this section, the claimant may bring an 35
action against the construction professional for the claim described 36
in the notice of claim without further notice. 37
(b) If the claimant rejects the inspection proposal or the 38
settlement offer made by the construction professional pursuant to 39
subsection (3) of this section, the claimant shall serve written 40
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notice of the claimant's rejection on the construction professional. 1
After service of the rejection, the claimant may bring an action 2
against the construction professional for the construction defect 3
claim described in the notice of claim. If the construction 4
professional has not received from the claimant, within 30 days after 5
the claimant's receipt of the construction professional's response, 6
either an acceptance or rejection of the inspection proposal or 7
settlement offer, then at anytime thereafter the construction 8
professional may terminate the proposal or offer by serving written 9
notice to the claimant, and the claimant may thereafter bring an 10
action against the construction professional for the construction 11
defect claim described in the notice of claim. 12
(5)(a) If the claimant elects to allow the construction 13
professional to inspect in accordance with the construction 14
professional's proposal pursuant to subsection (3)(a) of this 15
section, the claimant shall provide the construction professional and 16
its contractors or other agents reasonable access to the claimant's 17
residence during normal working hours to inspect the premises and the 18
claimed defect. 19
(b) Within 14 days following completion of the inspection, the 20
construction professional shall serve on the claimant:21
(i) A written offer to remedy the construction defect at no cost 22
to the claimant, including a report of the scope of the inspection, 23
the findings and results of the inspection, a description of the 24
additional construction necessary to remedy the defect described in 25
the claim, and a timetable for the completion of such construction;26
(ii) A written offer to compromise and settle the claim by 27
monetary payment pursuant to subsection (3)(b) of this section; or28
(iii) A written statement that the construction professional will 29
not proceed further to remedy the defect. 30
(c) If the construction professional does not proceed further to 31
remedy the construction defect within the agreed timetable, or if the 32
construction professional fails to comply with the provisions of (b) 33
of this subsection, the claimant may bring an action against the 34
construction professional for the claim described in the notice of 35
claim without further notice. 36
(d) If the claimant rejects the offer made by the construction 37
professional pursuant to (b)(i) or (ii) of this subsection to either 38
remedy the construction defect or to compromise and settle the claim 39
by monetary payment, the claimant shall serve written notice of the 40
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claimant's rejection on the construction professional. After service 1
of the rejection notice, the claimant may bring an action against the 2
construction professional for the construction defect claim described 3
in the notice of claim. If the construction professional has not 4
received from the claimant, within 30 days after the claimant's 5
receipt of the construction professional's response, either an 6
acceptance or rejection of the offer made pursuant to (b)(i) or (ii) 7
of this subsection, then at anytime thereafter the construction 8
professional may terminate the offer by serving written notice to the 9
claimant. 10
(6)(a) Any claimant accepting the offer of a construction 11
professional to remedy the construction defect pursuant to subsection 12
(5)(b)(i) of this section shall do so by serving the construction 13
professional with a written notice of acceptance within a reasonable 14
time period after receipt of the offer, and no later than 30 days 15
after receipt of the offer. The claimant shall provide the 16
construction professional and its contractors or other agents 17
reasonable access to the claimant's residence during normal working 18
hours to perform and complete the construction by the timetable 19
stated in the offer. 20
(b) The claimant and construction professional may, by written 21
mutual agreement, alter the extent of construction or the timetable 22
for completion of construction stated in the offer, including, but 23
not limited to, repair of additional defects. 24
(7) Any action commenced by a claimant prior to compliance with 25
the requirements of this section shall be subject to dismissal 26
without prejudice, and may not be recommenced until the claimant has 27
complied with the requirements of this section. 28
(8) Nothing in this section may be construed to prevent a 29
claimant from commencing an action on the construction defect claim 30
described in the notice of claim if the construction professional 31
fails to perform the construction agreed upon, fails to remedy the 32
defect, or fails to perform by the timetable agreed upon pursuant to 33
subsection (3)(a) or (6) of this section. 34
(9) Prior to commencing any action alleging a construction 35
defect, or after the dismissal of any action without prejudice 36
pursuant to subsection (7) of this section, the claimant may amend 37
the notice of claim to include construction defects discovered after 38
the service of the original notice of claim, and must otherwise 39
comply with the requirements of this section for the additional 40
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claims. The service of an amended notice of claim shall relate back 1
to the original notice of claim for purposes of tolling statutes of 2
limitations and repose. Claims for defects discovered after the 3
commencement or recommencement of an action may be added to such 4
action only after providing notice to the construction professional 5
of the defect and allowing for response under subsection (3) of this 6
section. 7
(10) If the claimant is an association, and notwithstanding any 8
contrary provisions in the association's governing documents, the 9
association's board of director's ability to incur expenses to 10
prepare and serve a notice of claim and any related reports and 11
otherwise comply with the requirements of this chapter shall not be 12
restricted. 13
(11) If the subject of the claim under this section is a 14
residence constructed or substantially remodeled on or after the 15
effective date of this section, the court or arbitrator shall assess 16
costs and reasonable attorneys' fees against a claimant or 17
construction professional who refuses to accept an offer to remedy 18
the defect or a compromise by payment and fails to improve its 19
position in the subsequent construction defect action.20
Sec. 5. RCW 64.55.005 and 2019 c 238 s 216 are each amended to 21
read as follows: 22
(1)(a) RCW 64.55.010 through 64.55.090 apply to any multiunit 23
residential building for which the permit for construction or 24
rehabilitative construction of such building was issued on or after 25
August 1, 2005. 26
(b) RCW 64.55.010 and 64.55.090 apply to conversion condominiums 27
as defined in RCW 64.34.020 or conversion buildings as defined in RCW 28
64.90.010, provided that RCW 64.55.090 shall not apply to a 29
condominium conversion for which a public offering statement had been 30
delivered pursuant to chapter 64.34 RCW prior to August 1, 2005.31
(c) RCW 64.55.010 through 64.55.090 do not apply to an accessory 32
dwelling unit organized pursuant to chapter 64.90 RCW as a 33
condominium unit in a common interest community created on or after 34
the effective date of this section.35
(2) RCW 64.55.010 and 64.55.100 through 64.55.160 and 64.34.415 36
apply to any action that alleges breach of an implied or express 37
warranty under chapter 64.34 RCW or that seeks relief that could be 38
awarded for such breach, regardless of the legal theory pleaded, 39
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except that RCW 64.55.100 through 64.55.160 and 64.34.415 shall not 1
apply to: 2
(a) Actions filed or served prior to August 1, 2005;3
(b) Actions for which a notice of claim was served pursuant to 4
chapter 64.50 RCW prior to August 1, 2005; 5
(c) Actions asserting any claim regarding a building that is not 6
a multiunit residential building; 7
(d) Actions asserting any claim regarding a multiunit residential 8
building that was permitted on or after August 1, 2005, unless the 9
letter required by RCW 64.55.060 has been submitted to the 10
appropriate building department or the requirements of RCW 64.55.090 11
have been satisfied. 12
(3) Other than the requirements imposed by RCW 64.55.010 through 13
64.55.090, nothing in this chapter amends or modifies the provisions 14
of RCW 64.34.050. 15
Sec. 6. RCW 64.55.005 and 2024 c 321 s 423 are each amended to 16
read as follows: 17
(1)(a) RCW 64.55.010 through 64.55.090 apply to any multiunit 18
residential building for which the permit for construction or 19
rehabilitative construction of such building was issued on or after 20
August 1, 2005. 21
(b) RCW 64.55.010 and 64.55.090 apply to conversion buildings as 22
defined in RCW 64.90.010. 23
(c) RCW 64.55.010 through 64.55.090 do not apply to an accessory 24
dwelling unit organized pursuant to chapter 64.90 RCW as a 25
condominium unit in a common interest community created on or after 26
the effective date of section 5 of this act.27
(2) RCW 64.55.010 and 64.55.100 through 64.55.160 and 64.90.620 28
apply to any action that alleges breach of an implied or express 29
warranty under chapter 64.90 RCW or that seeks relief that could be 30
awarded for such breach, regardless of the legal theory pleaded, 31
except that RCW 64.55.100 through 64.55.160 and 64.90.620 shall not 32
apply to: 33
(a) Actions filed or served prior to August 1, 2005;34
(b) Actions for which a notice of claim was served pursuant to 35
chapter 64.50 RCW prior to August 1, 2005; 36
(c) Actions asserting any claim regarding a building that is not 37
a multiunit residential building; 38
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(d) Actions asserting any claim regarding a multiunit residential 1
building that was permitted on or after August 1, 2005, unless the 2
letter required by RCW 64.55.060 has been submitted to the 3
appropriate building department or the requirements of RCW 64.55.090 4
have been satisfied. 5
(3) Other than the requirements imposed by RCW 64.55.010 through 6
64.55.090, nothing in this chapter amends or modifies the provisions 7
of RCW 64.90.025. 8
Sec. 7. RCW 64.90.675 and 2018 c 277 s 416 are each amended to 9
read as follows: 10
(1) Except as limited under subsection s (2) and (4) of this 11
section with respect to a purchaser of a condominium unit that may be 12
used for residential use, implied warranties of quality under RCW 13
64.90.670: 14
(a) May be excluded or modified by written agreement of the 15
parties; and 16
(b) Are excluded by written expression of disclaimer, such as "as 17
is," "with all faults," or other language that in common 18
understanding calls the buyer's attention to the exclusion of 19
warranties. 20
(2) With respect to a purchaser of a condominium unit that may be 21
used for residential use, no disclaimer of implied warranties of 22
quality under RCW 64.90.670 is effective, except that a declarant and 23
any dealer may disclaim liability in an instrument for one or more 24
specified defects or failures to comply with applicable law, if:25
(a) The declarant or dealer knows or has reason to believe that 26
the specific defects or failures exist at the time of disclosure;27
(b) The disclaimer specifically describes the defects or 28
failures; 29
(c) The disclaimer includes a statement as to the effect of the 30
defects or failures; 31
(d) The disclaimer is boldfaced, capitalized, underlined, or 32
otherwise set out from surrounding material so as to be conspicuous; 33
and 34
(e) The disclaimer is signed by the purchaser.35
(3) ((A)) Except as provided in subsection (4) of this section, a 36
declarant or dealer may not make an express written warranty of 37
quality that limits the implied warranties of quality made to the 38
purchaser set forth in RCW 64.90.670. 39
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(4)(a) With respect to a unit in a condominium created on or 1
after the effective date of this section, a declarant or dealer is 2
not subject to the implied warranties of quality set forth in RCW 3
64.90.670 if the declarant or dealer provides for the condominium 4
unit an express warranty of quality and express warranty insurance 5
coverage that meets the requirements in (b) of this subsection, and 6
the condominium unit is:7
(i) An accessory dwelling unit organized as a condominium 8
pursuant to this chapter;9
(ii) Located in a new building or a condominium conversion 10
containing 12 or fewer units and two or fewer stories; or11
(iii) Located in a new building or a condominium conversion 12
containing 12 or fewer units and three or fewer stories, if one story 13
is utilized for parking, either above or below ground, or as a 14
commercial space.15
(b) An express warranty of quality and insurance coverage 16
provided under (a) of this subsection must:17
(i) Require acknowledgment by the unit purchaser that the express 18
warranty of quality applies;19
(ii) Allow for recovery of defects under the express warranty of 20
quality by the unit owner and any subsequent purchaser, and by the 21
unit owners association for common areas;22
(iii) Apply to all condominium units and common areas within the 23
building; and24
(iv) Provide minimum coverage periods as follows:25
(A) One year for workmanship and materials;26
(B) Two years for plumbing, electrical, and ductwork distribution 27
systems; and28
(C) 10 years for structural defects to load-bearing structural 29
members.30
NEW SECTION. Sec. 8. Section 5 of this act expires January 1, 31
2028.32
NEW SECTION. Sec. 9. Section 6 of this act takes effect January 33
1, 2028.34
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