Eventual tenant ownership

AN ACT Relating to increasing opportunities for tenants to own 1
homes under eventual tenant ownership programs established under the 2
federal low-income housing tax credit program; and adding new 3
sections to chapter 43.180 RCW. 4
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:5
NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. A new section is added to chapter 43.180 6
RCW to read as follows: 7
(1) A private developer who is allocated a federal low-income 8
housing tax credit by the commission, and who is participating in a 9
program intended to assist tenants in becoming homeowners, including 10
an eventual tenant ownership program, shall: 11
(a) Establish a reserve or escrow account required by the 12
commission's rules or agreements or by federal rules;13
(b) Inform residents, tenants, or purchasers of their rights and 14
responsibilities to have ownership transferred to them as required by 15
law or agreements; 16
(c) Inform nonprofit, municipal, or tribal government development 17
partners of rights, responsibilities, and requirements under the 18
terms of federal low-income housing tax credit financed agreements 19
and meet terms and conditions as a private developer or facilitator 20
of housing developments in partnership with such entities; and21
H-2859.1
HOUSE BILL 2527
State of Washington 69th Legislature 2026 Regular Session
By Representatives Pollet, Stearns, Taylor, Ryu, Dufault, Parshley,
Goodman, Macri, Gregerson, Simmons, Ormsby, Cortes, Nance, Scott, and
Obras
Read first time 01/16/26. Referred to Committee on Housing.
p. 1 HB 2527
(d) Ensure that ownership of homes is transferred to tenants in a 1
timely manner pursuant to the terms of agreements approved by the 2
commission or pursuant to applicable state or federal law.3
(2)(a) The commission shall promptly investigate the following 4
within a reasonable period of time: 5
(i) Any complaints submitted to the commission alleging 6
violations of subsection (1) of this section; 7
(ii) Any audit or formal finding of the federal internal revenue 8
service indicating violations of subsection (1) of this section; and9
(iii) Any audit by the state auditor indicating violations of 10
subsection (1) of this section. 11
(b) The commission shall act on the findings of any audit or 12
complaint within six months of receipt. 13
(3)(a) If the commission finds that a developer has violated 14
subsection (1) of this section, the commission may not allocate any 15
additional federal low-income housing tax credits to that developer 16
for a period of one to five years. 17
(b) If the commission finds that the violation of subsection (1) 18
of this section was willful or purposeful, or if an audit or formal 19
finding by the federal internal revenue service or an audit by the 20
state auditor finds that the violation of subsection (1) of this 21
section was willful or purposeful, the commission shall prohibit the 22
developer from participating in any program funded or administered by 23
the commission for a period of two to five years. 24
(4) A developer found to have violated subsection (1) of this 25
section may appeal the commission's finding to the office of 26
administrative hearings. Such hearings are subject to chapter 34.05 27
RCW, the administrative procedures act. 28
(5) This section applies retroactively to violations of 29
subsection (1) of this section occurring up to five years prior to 30
the effective date of this section. 31
NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. A new section is added to chapter 43.180 32
RCW to read as follows: 33
(1) The commission shall annually monitor the progress of all 34
development agreements using eventual tenant ownership or rent-to-own 35
options and post the results on its website. 36
(2) The commission shall inform tenants of each approved program 37
or agreement funded through the commission of their opportunity to 38
comment on information provided to them and progress toward home 39
p. 2 HB 2527
ownership, including how they may comment or file an anonymous 1
complaint. 2
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p. 3 HB 2527