Landlord-tenant relations

AN ACT Relating to landlord-tenant relations; amending RCW 1
59.18.650, 59.18.650, 59.18.370, 59.18.380, 59.18.640, 59.18.057, 2
59.18.365, 59.18.630, 59.18.410, and 59.18.063; adding a new section 3
to chapter 59.18 RCW; providing an effective date; and providing an 4
expiration date. 5
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:6
Sec. 1. RCW 59.18.650 and 2021 c 212 s 2 are each amended to 7
read as follows: 8
(1)(a) A landlord may not evict a tenant, refuse to continue a 9
tenancy, or end a periodic tenancy except for the causes enumerated 10
in subsection (2) of this section and as otherwise provided in this 11
subsection. 12
(b) If a landlord and tenant enter into a rental agreement that 13
provides for the tenancy to continue for an indefinite period on a 14
month-to-month or periodic basis after the agreement expires, the 15
landlord may not end the tenancy except for the causes enumerated in 16
subsection (2) of this section; however, a landlord may end such a 17
tenancy at the end of the initial period of the rental agreement 18
without cause only if: 19
(i) At the inception of the tenancy, the landlord and tenant 20
entered into a rental agreement between six and 12 months; and21
H-3067.1
HOUSE BILL 2699
State of Washington 69th Legislature 2026 Regular Session
By Representatives Richards, Barkis, and Pollet
Read first time 01/28/26. Referred to Committee on Housing.
p. 1 HB 2699
(ii) The landlord has provided the tenant before the end of the 1
initial lease period at least 60 days' advance written notice ending 2
the tenancy, served in a manner consistent with RCW 59.12.040.3
(c) If a landlord and tenant enter into a rental agreement for a 4
specified period in which the tenancy by the terms of the rental 5
agreement does not continue for an indefinite period on a month-to-6
month or periodic basis after the end of the specified period, ((the 7
landlord may end such a tenancy without cause upon expiration of the 8
specified period only if:9
(i) At the inception of the tenancy, the landlord and tenant 10
entered into a rental agreement of 12 months or more for a specified 11
period, or the landlord and tenant have continuously and without 12
interruption entered into successive rental agreements of six months 13
or more for a specified period since the inception of the tenancy;14
(ii) The)) and the landlord has provided the tenant before the 15
end of the specified period at least 60 days' advance written notice 16
that the tenancy will be deemed expired at the end of such specified 17
period, served in a manner consistent with RCW 59.12.040((; and18
(iii) The tenancy has not been for an indefinite period on a 19
month-to-month or periodic basis at any point since the inception of 20
the tenancy. However, for any tenancy of an indefinite period in 21
existence as of May 10, 2021, if the landlord and tenant enter into a 22
rental agreement between May 10, 2021, and three months following the 23
expiration of the governor's proclamation 20-19.6 or any extensions 24
thereof, the landlord may exercise rights under this subsection 25
(1)(c) as if the rental agreement was entered into at the inception 26
of the tenancy provided that the rental agreement is otherwise in 27
accordance with this subsection (1)(c))), then a landlord may end 28
such a tenancy at the end of the initial period of the rental 29
agreement without cause. 30
(d) For all other tenancies of a specified period not covered 31
under (b) or (c) of this subsection, and for tenancies of an 32
indefinite period on a month-to-month or periodic basis, a landlord 33
may not end the tenancy except for the causes enumerated in 34
subsection (2) of this section. Upon the end date of the tenancy of a 35
specified period, the tenancy becomes a month-to-month tenancy.36
(e) Nothing prohibits a landlord and tenant from entering into 37
subsequent lease agreements that are in compliance with the 38
requirements in subsection (2) of this section. 39
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(f) A tenant may end a tenancy for a specified time by providing 1
notice in writing not less than 20 days prior to the ending date of 2
the specified time. 3
(2) The following reasons listed in this subsection constitute 4
cause pursuant to subsection (1) of this section . The tenant 5
continues in possession: 6
(a) ((The tenant continues in possession in person or by 7
subtenant)) (i) After service of at least 14 days' written notice to 8
pay or vacate as set forth in RCW 59.12.030(3), and after a default 9
in the payment of rent ((, and after )). The written notice 10
((requiring)) must require , in the alternative, the payment of the 11
rent or the surrender of the detained premises ((has remained 12
uncomplied with for the period set forth in RCW 59.12.030(3) for 13
tenants subject to this chapter )). The written notice may be served 14
at any time after the rent becomes due; 15
(ii) Notwithstanding the 14-day notice period set forth in RCW 16
59.12.030(3), a landlord must provide a tenant in a covered dwelling 17
unit with at least 30 days' advance written notice to vacate for 18
evictions stemming from nonpayment of rent;19
(iii) For the purposes of this subsection, "covered dwelling 20
unit" means a property that:21
(A) Participates in a covered housing program as defined in 22
section 41411(a) of the violence against women act of 1994, 34 U.S.C. 23
Sec. 12491(a), or the rural housing voucher program under section 542 24
of the housing act of 1949, 42 U.S.C. Sec. 1490r; or25
(B) Has a federally backed mortgage loan, or federally backed 26
multifamily mortgage loan;27
(b) ((The tenant continues in possession )) After service of at 28
least 10 days' written notice to comply or vacate, and after 29
substantial breach of a material program requirement of subsidized 30
housing, material term subscribed to by the tenant within the lease 31
or rental agreement, or a tenant obligation imposed by law, other 32
than one for monetary damages ((, and after the landlord has served )). 33
The written notice ((specifying)) must specify the acts or omissions 34
constituting the breach , including the relevant date and time of the 35
breach and the identities of the individuals involved, and 36
((requiring)) require, in the alternative, that the breach be 37
((remedied or the rental agreement will end, and the breach has not 38
been)) adequately remedied by the date specified in the notice, 39
p. 3 HB 2699
((which date must be at least 10 days after service of the notice )) 1
or the rental agreement will end; 2
(c) ((The tenant continues in possession after having received at 3
least three days' advance written notice to quit after he or she 4
commits or permits )) After service of at least three days' written 5
notice to quit, and after committing or permitting waste or nuisance 6
upon the premises, unlawful activity that affects the use and 7
enjoyment of the premises, or other substantial or repeated and 8
unreasonable interference with the health, safety, and welfare of, or 9
use and enjoyment of the premises by , the landlord or neighbors of 10
the tenant; 11
(d) ((The tenant continues in possession )) After service of at 12
least 90 days' written notice to vacate, and after the landlord of a 13
dwelling unit in good faith seeks possession so that the owner or his 14
or her immediate family may occupy the unit as that person's 15
principal residence and no substantially equivalent unit is vacant 16
and available to house the owner or his or her immediate family in 17
the same building ((, and the owner has provided at least 90 days' 18
advance written notice of the date the tenant's possession is to 19
end)). There is a rebuttable presumption that the owner did not act 20
in good faith if the owner or immediate family fails to occupy the 21
unit as a principal residence for at least 60 consecutive days during 22
the 90 days immediately after the tenant vacated the unit pursuant to 23
a notice to vacate using this subsection (2)(d) as the cause for the 24
lease ending; 25
(e) ((The tenant continues in possession )) After service of at 26
least 90 days' written notice to vacate, and after the owner elects 27
to sell a single dwelling unit, which includes but is not limited to 28
a single-family residence ((and the landlord has provided at least 90 29
days' advance written notice of the date the tenant's possession is 30
to end)), a condominium unit, a townhouse unit, or any other similar 31
type of dwelling unit. For the purposes of this subsection (2)(e), an 32
owner "elects to sell" when the owner makes reasonable attempts to 33
sell the ((dwelling)) unit within 30 days after the tenant has 34
vacated, including, at a minimum, listing it for sale at a reasonable 35
price with a realty agency or advertising it for sale at a reasonable 36
price by listing it on the real estate multiple listing service. 37
There shall be a rebuttable presumption that the owner did not intend 38
to sell the unit if: 39
p. 4 HB 2699
(i) Within 30 days after the tenant has vacated, the owner does 1
not list the ((single-family dwelling)) unit for sale at a reasonable 2
price with a realty agency or advertise it for sale at a reasonable 3
price by listing it on the real estate multiple listing service; or4
(ii) Within 90 days after the date the tenant vacated or the date 5
the property was listed for sale, whichever is later, the owner 6
withdraws the ((rental)) unit from the market, the landlord rents the 7
unit to someone other than the former tenant, or the landlord 8
otherwise indicates that the owner does not intend to sell the unit;9
(f) ((The tenant continues in possession of the premises after 10
the landlord serves the tenant with advance written notice pursuant 11
to RCW 59.18.200(2)(c))) After service of at least 120 days' written 12
notice to vacate pursuant to RCW 59.18.200(2)(c), and after a 13
landlord plans to demolish or substantially rehabilitate the 14
premises, or plans a change of use of the premises;15
(g) ((The tenant continues in possession )) After service of at 16
least 120 days' written notice to vacate pursuant to RCW 64.34.440 or 17
64.90.655, and after the owner elects to withdraw the premises from 18
the rental market to pursue a conversion of the building to a 19
condominium or other form of common interest ownership pursuant to 20
RCW 64.34.440 or 64.90.655; 21
(h) ((The tenant continues in possession, after the landlord has 22
provided at least 30 days' advance written notice to vacate that )) 23
After service of at least 30 days' written notice to vacate, and 24
after: (i) The premises has been certified or condemned as 25
uninhabitable by a local agency charged with the authority to issue 26
such an order; and (ii) continued habitation of the premises would 27
subject the landlord to civil or criminal penalties. However, if the 28
terms of the local agency's order do not allow the landlord to 29
provide at least 30 days' advance written notice, the landlord must 30
provide as much advance written notice as is possible and still 31
comply with the order; 32
(i) ((The tenant continues in possession after an owner or 33
lessor, with whom)) After written notice to vacate is served at least 34
20 days before the end of the rental term or period, when the tenant 35
shares the dwelling unit or access to a common kitchen or bathroom 36
area((, has served at least 20 days' advance written notice to vacate 37
prior to the end of the rental term or, if a periodic tenancy, the 38
end of the rental period)) with an owner; 39
p. 5 HB 2699
(j) ((The tenant continues in possession of a dwelling unit in 1
transitional housing after having received at least 30 days' advance 2
written notice to vacate in advance of )) After written notice to 3
vacate is served at least 30 days before the expiration of the 4
transitional housing program, the tenant has aged out of the 5
transitional housing program, or the tenant has completed an 6
educational or training or service program and is no longer eligible 7
to participate in the transitional housing program. Nothing in this 8
subsection (2)(j) prohibits the ending of a tenancy in transitional 9
housing for any of the other causes specified in this subsection;10
(k) ((The tenant continues in possession of a dwelling unit 11
after)) After the expiration of a rental agreement without signing a 12
proposed new rental agreement proffered by the landlord; provided, 13
that the landlord proffered the proposed new rental agreement at 14
least 30 days prior to the expiration of the current rental agreement 15
and that any new terms and conditions of the proposed new rental 16
agreement are reasonable. This subsection (2)(k) does not apply to 17
tenants whose tenancies are or have become periodic;18
(l) ((The tenant continues in possession after having received at 19
least 30 days' advance written notice to vacate due to )) After 20
service of at least 30 days' written notice to vacate, and after the 21
tenant made intentional, knowing, and material misrepresentations or 22
omissions ((made)) on the tenant's application at the inception of 23
the tenancy that, had these misrepresentations or omissions not been 24
made, would have resulted in the landlord requesting additional 25
information or taking an adverse action; 26
(m) ((The tenant continues in possession after having received at 27
least 60 days' advance written notice to vacate for other good cause 28
prior to the end of the period or rental agreement and such )) After 29
written notice to vacate is served at least 60 days before the end of 30
the rental term or period, and the landlord has good cause for 31
eviction which constitutes a legitimate economic or business reason 32
not covered or related to a basis for ending the lease as enumerated 33
under this subsection (2). When the landlord relies on this basis for 34
ending the tenancy, the court may stay any writ of restitution for up 35
to 60 additional days for good cause shown, including difficulty 36
procuring alternative housing. The court must condition such a stay 37
upon the tenant's continued payment of rent during the stay period. 38
Upon granting such a stay, the court must award court costs and fees 39
as allowed under this chapter; 40
p. 6 HB 2699
(n)(i) ((The tenant continues in possession after having received 1
at least 60 days' written notice to vacate prior to the end of the 2
period or rental agreement and )) After written notice to vacate is 3
served at least 60 days before the end of the rental term or period, 4
and the tenant has committed four or more of the following 5
violations((, other than ones for monetary damages, )) within the 6
preceding 12-month period, ((the tenant has remedied or cured the 7
violation,)) and the landlord ((has)) provided the tenant with a 8
written warning notice at the time of each violation: A substantial 9
breach of a material program requirement of subsidized housing, a 10
substantial breach of a material term subscribed to by the tenant 11
within the lease or rental agreement, a substantial or repeated and 12
unreasonable interference with the health, safety, and welfare of, or 13
use and enjoyment of the premises by, the landlord or neighbors of 14
the tenant, or a substantial breach of a tenant obligation imposed by 15
law; 16
(ii) Each written warning notice must: 17
(A) Specify the violation , including the relevant date and time 18
of the violation and the identities of the individuals involved;19
(B) Provide the tenant an opportunity to cure the violation;20
(C) State that the landlord may choose to end the tenancy at the 21
end of the rental term if there are four violations within a 12-month 22
period preceding the end of the term; and 23
(D) State that correcting the fourth or subsequent violation is 24
not a defense to the ending of the lease under this subsection;25
(iii) The 60-day notice to vacate must: 26
(A) State that the rental agreement will end upon the specified 27
ending date for the rental term or upon a designated date not less 28
than 60 days after the delivery of the notice, whichever is later;29
(B) Specify the reason for ending the lease and supporting facts; 30
and 31
(C) Be served to the tenant concurrent with or after the fourth 32
or subsequent written warning notice; 33
(iv) The notice under this subsection must include all notices 34
supporting the basis of ending the lease; 35
(v) Any notices asserted under this subsection must pertain to 36
four or more separate incidents or occurrences; and37
(vi) This subsection (2)(n) does not absolve a landlord from 38
demonstrating by admissible evidence that the four or more violations 39
constituted breaches under (b) of this subsection at the time of the 40
p. 7 HB 2699
violation had the tenant not remedied or cured the violation . A 1
landlord must prove the violations alleged under each of the notices;2
(o) ((The tenant continues in possession after having received at 3
least 60 days' advance written notice to vacate prior to the end of 4
the rental period or rental agreement if )) After written notice to 5
vacate is served at least 60 days before the end of the rental term 6
or period, and after the tenant is required to register as a sex 7
offender during the tenancy, or after the tenant failed to disclose a 8
requirement to register as a sex offender to the property owner at 9
the beginning of the tenancy when such disclosure was required in the 10
rental application or otherwise known ((to the property owner at the 11
beginning of the tenancy)); 12
(p) ((The tenant continues in possession after having received at 13
least 20 days' advance written notice to vacate prior to the end of 14
the rental period or rental agreement if )) After written notice to 15
vacate is served at least 20 days before the end of the rental term 16
or period, and after the tenant has made unwanted sexual advances or 17
other acts of sexual harassment directed at the property owner, 18
property manager, property employee, or another tenant based on the 19
person's race, gender, or other protected status in violation of any 20
covenant or term in the lease. For the purposes of this subsection, 21
"unlawful harassment" has the same meaning as in RCW 7.105.010.22
(3) When a tenant has permanently vacated due to voluntary or 23
involuntary events, other than by the ending of the tenancy by the 24
landlord, a landlord must serve a notice to any remaining occupants 25
who had coresided with the tenant at least six months prior to and up 26
to the time the tenant permanently vacated, requiring the occupants 27
to either apply to become a party to the rental agreement or vacate 28
within 30 days of service of such notice. In processing any 29
application from a remaining occupant under this subsection, the 30
landlord may require the occupant to meet the same screening, 31
background, and financial criteria as would any other prospective 32
tenant to continue the tenancy. If the occupant fails to apply within 33
30 days of receipt of the notice in this subsection, or the 34
application is denied for failure to meet the criteria, the landlord 35
may commence an unlawful detainer action under this chapter. If an 36
occupant becomes a party to the tenancy pursuant to this subsection, 37
a landlord may not end the tenancy except as provided under 38
subsection (2) of this section. This subsection does not apply to 39
tenants residing in subsidized housing. 40
p. 8 HB 2699
(4) A landlord who removes a tenant or causes a tenant to be 1
removed from a dwelling in any way in violation of this section is 2
liable to the tenant for wrongful eviction, and the tenant prevailing 3
in such an action is entitled to the greater of their economic and 4
noneconomic damages or three times the monthly rent of the dwelling 5
at issue, and reasonable attorneys' fees and court costs.6
(5) Nothing in subsection (2)(d), (e), or (f) of this section 7
permits a landlord to end a tenancy for a specified period before the 8
completion of the term unless the landlord and the tenant mutually 9
consent, in writing, to ending the tenancy early and the tenant is 10
afforded at least 60 days to vacate. 11
(6) All written notices required under subsection (2) of this 12
section must: 13
(a) Be served in a manner consistent with RCW 59.12.040; and14
(b) Identify the facts and circumstances known and available to 15
the landlord at the time of the issuance of the notice that support 16
the cause or causes with enough specificity so as to enable the 17
tenant to respond and prepare a defense to any incidents alleged. The 18
landlord may present additional facts and circumstances regarding the 19
allegations within the notice if such evidence was unknown or 20
unavailable at the time of the issuance of the notice.21
Sec. 2. RCW 59.18.650 and 2024 c 321 s 409 are each amended to 22
read as follows: 23
(1)(a) A landlord may not evict a tenant, refuse to continue a 24
tenancy, or end a periodic tenancy except for the causes enumerated 25
in subsection (2) of this section and as otherwise provided in this 26
subsection. 27
(b) If a landlord and tenant enter into a rental agreement that 28
provides for the tenancy to continue for an indefinite period on a 29
month-to-month or periodic basis after the agreement expires, the 30
landlord may not end the tenancy except for the causes enumerated in 31
subsection (2) of this section; however, a landlord may end such a 32
tenancy at the end of the initial period of the rental agreement 33
without cause only if: 34
(i) At the inception of the tenancy, the landlord and tenant 35
entered into a rental agreement between six and 12 months; and36
(ii) The landlord has provided the tenant before the end of the 37
initial lease period at least 60 days' advance written notice ending 38
the tenancy, served in a manner consistent with RCW 59.12.040.39
p. 9 HB 2699
(c) If a landlord and tenant enter into a rental agreement for a 1
specified period in which the tenancy by the terms of the rental 2
agreement does not continue for an indefinite period on a month-to-3
month or periodic basis after the end of the specified period, ((the 4
landlord may end such a tenancy without cause upon expiration of the 5
specified period only if:6
(i) At the inception of the tenancy, the landlord and tenant 7
entered into a rental agreement of 12 months or more for a specified 8
period, or the landlord and tenant have continuously and without 9
interruption entered into successive rental agreements of six months 10
or more for a specified period since the inception of the tenancy;11
(ii) The)) and the landlord has provided the tenant before the 12
end of the specified period at least 60 days' advance written notice 13
that the tenancy will be deemed expired at the end of such specified 14
period, served in a manner consistent with RCW 59.12.040((; and15
(iii) The tenancy has not been for an indefinite period on a 16
month-to-month or periodic basis at any point since the inception of 17
the tenancy. However, for any tenancy of an indefinite period in 18
existence as of May 10, 2021, if the landlord and tenant enter into a 19
rental agreement between May 10, 2021, and three months following the 20
expiration of the governor's proclamation 20-19.6 or any extensions 21
thereof, the landlord may exercise rights under this subsection 22
(1)(c) as if the rental agreement was entered into at the inception 23
of the tenancy provided that the rental agreement is otherwise in 24
accordance with this subsection (1)(c))), then a landlord may end 25
such a tenancy at the end of the initial period of the rental 26
agreement without cause. 27
(d) For all other tenancies of a specified period not covered 28
under (b) or (c) of this subsection, and for tenancies of an 29
indefinite period on a month-to-month or periodic basis, a landlord 30
may not end the tenancy except for the causes enumerated in 31
subsection (2) of this section. Upon the end date of the tenancy of a 32
specified period, the tenancy becomes a month-to-month tenancy.33
(e) Nothing prohibits a landlord and tenant from entering into 34
subsequent lease agreements that are in compliance with the 35
requirements in subsection (2) of this section. 36
(f) A tenant may end a tenancy for a specified time by providing 37
notice in writing not less than 20 days prior to the ending date of 38
the specified time. 39
p. 10 HB 2699
(2) The following reasons listed in this subsection constitute 1
cause pursuant to subsection (1) of this section . The tenant 2
continues in possession: 3
(a) ((The tenant continues in possession in person or by 4
subtenant)) (i) After service of at least 14 days' written notice to 5
pay or vacate as set forth in RCW 59.12.030(3), and after a default 6
in the payment of rent ((, and after )). The written notice 7
((requiring)) must require , in the alternative, the payment of the 8
rent or the surrender of the detained premises ((has remained 9
uncomplied with for the period set forth in RCW 59.12.030(3) for 10
tenants subject to this chapter )). The written notice may be served 11
at any time after the rent becomes due; 12
(ii) Notwithstanding the 14-day notice period set forth in RCW 13
59.12.030(3), a landlord must provide a tenant in a covered dwelling 14
unit with at least 30 days' advance written notice to vacate for 15
evictions stemming from nonpayment of rent;16
(iii) For the purposes of this subsection, "covered dwelling 17
unit" means a property that:18
(A) Participates in a covered housing program as defined in 19
section 41411(a) of the violence against women act of 1994, 34 U.S.C. 20
Sec. 12491(a), or the rural housing voucher program under section 542 21
of the housing act of 1949, 42 U.S.C. Sec. 1490r; or22
(B) Has a federally backed mortgage loan, or federally backed 23
multifamily mortgage loan;24
(b) ((The tenant continues in possession )) After service of at 25
least 10 days' written notice to comply or vacate, and after 26
substantial breach of a material program requirement of subsidized 27
housing, material term subscribed to by the tenant within the lease 28
or rental agreement, or a tenant obligation imposed by law, other 29
than one for monetary damages ((, and after the landlord has served )). 30
The written notice ((specifying)) must specify the acts or omissions 31
constituting the breach , including the relevant date and time of the 32
breach and the identities of the individuals involved, and 33
((requiring)) require, in the alternative, that the breach be 34
((remedied or the rental agreement will end, and the breach has not 35
been)) adequately remedied by the date specified in the notice, 36
((which date must be at least 10 days after service of the notice )) 37
or the rental agreement will end; 38
(c) ((The tenant continues in possession after having received at 39
least three days' advance written notice to quit after he or she 40
p. 11 HB 2699
commits or permits )) After service of at least three days' written 1
notice to quit, and after committing or permitting waste or nuisance 2
upon the premises, unlawful activity that affects the use and 3
enjoyment of the premises, or other substantial or repeated and 4
unreasonable interference with the health, safety, and welfare of, or 5
use and enjoyment of the premises by , the landlord or neighbors of 6
the tenant; 7
(d) ((The tenant continues in possession )) After service of at 8
least 90 days' written notice to vacate, and after the landlord of a 9
dwelling unit in good faith seeks possession so that the owner or his 10
or her immediate family may occupy the unit as that person's 11
principal residence and no substantially equivalent unit is vacant 12
and available to house the owner or his or her immediate family in 13
the same building ((, and the owner has provided at least 90 days' 14
advance written notice of the date the tenant's possession is to 15
end)). There is a rebuttable presumption that the owner did not act 16
in good faith if the owner or immediate family fails to occupy the 17
unit as a principal residence for at least 60 consecutive days during 18
the 90 days immediately after the tenant vacated the unit pursuant to 19
a notice to vacate using this subsection (2)(d) as the cause for the 20
lease ending; 21
(e) ((The tenant continues in possession )) After service of at 22
least 90 days' written notice to vacate, and after the owner elects 23
to sell a single dwelling unit, which includes but is not limited to 24
a single-family residence ((and the landlord has provided at least 90 25
days' advance written notice of the date the tenant's possession is 26
to end)), a condominium unit, a townhouse unit, or any other similar 27
type of dwelling unit. For the purposes of this subsection (2)(e), an 28
owner "elects to sell" when the owner makes reasonable attempts to 29
sell the ((dwelling)) unit within 30 days after the tenant has 30
vacated, including, at a minimum, listing it for sale at a reasonable 31
price with a realty agency or advertising it for sale at a reasonable 32
price by listing it on the real estate multiple listing service. 33
There shall be a rebuttable presumption that the owner did not intend 34
to sell the unit if: 35
(i) Within 30 days after the tenant has vacated, the owner does 36
not list the ((single-family dwelling)) unit for sale at a reasonable 37
price with a realty agency or advertise it for sale at a reasonable 38
price by listing it on the real estate multiple listing service; or39
p. 12 HB 2699
(ii) Within 90 days after the date the tenant vacated or the date 1
the property was listed for sale, whichever is later, the owner 2
withdraws the ((rental)) unit from the market, the landlord rents the 3
unit to someone other than the former tenant, or the landlord 4
otherwise indicates that the owner does not intend to sell the unit;5
(f) ((The tenant continues in possession of the premises after 6
the landlord serves the tenant with advance written notice pursuant 7
to RCW 59.18.200(2)(c))) After service of at least 120 days' written 8
notice to vacate pursuant to RCW 59.18.200(2)(c), and after a 9
landlord plans to demolish or substantially rehabilitate the 10
premises, or plans a change of use of the premises;11
(g) ((The tenant continues in possession )) After service of at 12
least 120 days' written notice to vacate pursuant to RCW 64.90.655, 13
and after the owner elects to withdraw the premises from the rental 14
market to pursue a conversion of the building to a condominium or 15
other form of common interest ownership pursuant to RCW 64.90.655;16
(h) ((The tenant continues in possession, after the landlord has 17
provided at least 30 days' advance written notice to vacate that )) 18
After service of at least 30 days' written notice to vacate, and 19
after: (i) The premises has been certified or condemned as 20
uninhabitable by a local agency charged with the authority to issue 21
such an order; and (ii) continued habitation of the premises would 22
subject the landlord to civil or criminal penalties. However, if the 23
terms of the local agency's order do not allow the landlord to 24
provide at least 30 days' advance written notice, the landlord must 25
provide as much advance written notice as is possible and still 26
comply with the order; 27
(i) ((The tenant continues in possession after an owner or 28
lessor, with whom)) After written notice to vacate is served at least 29
20 days before the end of the rental term or period, when the tenant 30
shares the dwelling unit or access to a common kitchen or bathroom 31
area((, has served at least 20 days' advance written notice to vacate 32
prior to the end of the rental term or, if a periodic tenancy, the 33
end of the rental period)) with an owner; 34
(j) ((The tenant continues in possession of a dwelling unit in 35
transitional housing after having received at least 30 days' advance 36
written notice to vacate in advance of )) After written notice to 37
vacate is served at least 30 days before the expiration of the 38
transitional housing program, the tenant has aged out of the 39
transitional housing program, or the tenant has completed an 40
p. 13 HB 2699
educational or training or service program and is no longer eligible 1
to participate in the transitional housing program. Nothing in this 2
subsection (2)(j) prohibits the ending of a tenancy in transitional 3
housing for any of the other causes specified in this subsection;4
(k) ((The tenant continues in possession of a dwelling unit 5
after)) After the expiration of a rental agreement without signing a 6
proposed new rental agreement proffered by the landlord; provided, 7
that the landlord proffered the proposed new rental agreement at 8
least 30 days prior to the expiration of the current rental agreement 9
and that any new terms and conditions of the proposed new rental 10
agreement are reasonable. This subsection (2)(k) does not apply to 11
tenants whose tenancies are or have become periodic;12
(l) ((The tenant continues in possession after having received at 13
least 30 days' advance written notice to vacate due to )) After 14
service of at least 30 days' written notice to vacate, and after the 15
tenant made intentional, knowing, and material misrepresentations or 16
omissions ((made)) on the tenant's application at the inception of 17
the tenancy that, had these misrepresentations or omissions not been 18
made, would have resulted in the landlord requesting additional 19
information or taking an adverse action; 20
(m) ((The tenant continues in possession after having received at 21
least 60 days' advance written notice to vacate for other good cause 22
prior to the end of the period or rental agreement and such )) After 23
written notice to vacate is served at least 60 days before the end of 24
the rental term or period, and the landlord has good cause for 25
eviction which constitutes a legitimate economic or business reason 26
not covered or related to a basis for ending the lease as enumerated 27
under this subsection (2). When the landlord relies on this basis for 28
ending the tenancy, the court may stay any writ of restitution for up 29
to 60 additional days for good cause shown, including difficulty 30
procuring alternative housing. The court must condition such a stay 31
upon the tenant's continued payment of rent during the stay period. 32
Upon granting such a stay, the court must award court costs and fees 33
as allowed under this chapter; 34
(n)(i) ((The tenant continues in possession after having received 35
at least 60 days' written notice to vacate prior to the end of the 36
period or rental agreement and )) After written notice to vacate is 37
served at least 60 days before the end of the rental term or period, 38
and the tenant has committed four or more of the following 39
violations((, other than ones for monetary damages, )) within the 40
p. 14 HB 2699
preceding 12-month period, ((the tenant has remedied or cured the 1
violation,)) and the landlord ((has)) provided the tenant with a 2
written warning notice at the time of each violation: A substantial 3
breach of a material program requirement of subsidized housing, a 4
substantial breach of a material term subscribed to by the tenant 5
within the lease or rental agreement, a substantial or repeated and 6
unreasonable interference with the health, safety, and welfare of, or 7
use and enjoyment of the premises by, the landlord or neighbors of 8
the tenant, or a substantial breach of a tenant obligation imposed by 9
law; 10
(ii) Each written warning notice must: 11
(A) Specify the violation , including the relevant date and time 12
of the violation and the identities of the individuals involved;13
(B) Provide the tenant an opportunity to cure the violation;14
(C) State that the landlord may choose to end the tenancy at the 15
end of the rental term if there are four violations within a 12-month 16
period preceding the end of the term; and 17
(D) State that correcting the fourth or subsequent violation is 18
not a defense to the ending of the lease under this subsection;19
(iii) The 60-day notice to vacate must: 20
(A) State that the rental agreement will end upon the specified 21
ending date for the rental term or upon a designated date not less 22
than 60 days after the delivery of the notice, whichever is later;23
(B) Specify the reason for ending the lease and supporting facts; 24
and 25
(C) Be served to the tenant concurrent with or after the fourth 26
or subsequent written warning notice; 27
(iv) The notice under this subsection must include all notices 28
supporting the basis of ending the lease; 29
(v) Any notices asserted under this subsection must pertain to 30
four or more separate incidents or occurrences; and31
(vi) This subsection (2)(n) does not absolve a landlord from 32
demonstrating by admissible evidence that the four or more violations 33
constituted breaches under (b) of this subsection at the time of the 34
violation had the tenant not remedied or cured the violation . A 35
landlord must prove the violations alleged under each of the notices;36
(o) ((The tenant continues in possession after having received at 37
least 60 days' advance written notice to vacate prior to the end of 38
the rental period or rental agreement if )) After written notice to 39
vacate is served at least 60 days before the end of the rental term 40
p. 15 HB 2699
or period, and after the tenant is required to register as a sex 1
offender during the tenancy, or after the tenant failed to disclose a 2
requirement to register as a sex offender to the property owner at 3
the beginning of the tenancy when such disclosure was required in the 4
rental application or otherwise known ((to the property owner at the 5
beginning of the tenancy)); 6
(p) ((The tenant continues in possession after having received at 7
least 20 days' advance written notice to vacate prior to the end of 8
the rental period or rental agreement if )) After written notice to 9
vacate is served at least 20 days before the end of the rental term 10
or period, and after the tenant has made unwanted sexual advances or 11
other acts of sexual harassment directed at the property owner, 12
property manager, property employee, or another tenant based on the 13
person's race, gender, or other protected status in violation of any 14
covenant or term in the lease. For the purposes of this subsection, 15
"unlawful harassment" has the same meaning as in RCW 7.105.010.16
(3) When a tenant has permanently vacated due to voluntary or 17
involuntary events, other than by the ending of the tenancy by the 18
landlord, a landlord must serve a notice to any remaining occupants 19
who had coresided with the tenant at least six months prior to and up 20
to the time the tenant permanently vacated, requiring the occupants 21
to either apply to become a party to the rental agreement or vacate 22
within 30 days of service of such notice. In processing any 23
application from a remaining occupant under this subsection, the 24
landlord may require the occupant to meet the same screening, 25
background, and financial criteria as would any other prospective 26
tenant to continue the tenancy. If the occupant fails to apply within 27
30 days of receipt of the notice in this subsection, or the 28
application is denied for failure to meet the criteria, the landlord 29
may commence an unlawful detainer action under this chapter. If an 30
occupant becomes a party to the tenancy pursuant to this subsection, 31
a landlord may not end the tenancy except as provided under 32
subsection (2) of this section. This subsection does not apply to 33
tenants residing in subsidized housing. 34
(4) A landlord who removes a tenant or causes a tenant to be 35
removed from a dwelling in any way in violation of this section is 36
liable to the tenant for wrongful eviction, and the tenant prevailing 37
in such an action is entitled to the greater of their economic and 38
noneconomic damages or three times the monthly rent of the dwelling 39
at issue, and reasonable attorneys' fees and court costs.40
p. 16 HB 2699
(5) Nothing in subsection (2)(d), (e), or (f) of this section 1
permits a landlord to end a tenancy for a specified period before the 2
completion of the term unless the landlord and the tenant mutually 3
consent, in writing, to ending the tenancy early and the tenant is 4
afforded at least 60 days to vacate. 5
(6) All written notices required under subsection (2) of this 6
section must: 7
(a) Be served in a manner consistent with RCW 59.12.040; and8
(b) Identify the facts and circumstances known and available to 9
the landlord at the time of the issuance of the notice that support 10
the cause or causes with enough specificity so as to enable the 11
tenant to respond and prepare a defense to any incidents alleged. The 12
landlord may present additional facts and circumstances regarding the 13
allegations within the notice if such evidence was unknown or 14
unavailable at the time of the issuance of the notice.15
Sec. 3. RCW 59.18.370 and 2005 c 130 s 2 are each amended to 16
read as follows: 17
(1) The plaintiff, at the time of commencing an action of 18
forcible entry or detainer or unlawful detainer, or at any time 19
afterwards, upon filing the complaint, may apply to the superior 20
court in which the action is pending for an order directing the 21
defendant to appear and show cause, if any he or she has, why a writ 22
of restitution should not issue restoring to the plaintiff possession 23
of the property in the complaint described, and the judge shall by 24
order fix a time and place for a hearing of the motion, which shall 25
not be less than seven nor more than thirty days from the date of 26
service of the order upon defendant. A copy of the order, together 27
with a copy of the summons and complaint if not previously served 28
upon the defendant, shall be served upon the defendant and the 29
defendant's attorney, if the defendant has legal representation, or 30
upon the defendant and the local legal aid organization that receives 31
funding to provide legal representation to indigent tenants under RCW 32
59.18.640, if the defendant does not have legal representation . The 33
order shall notify the defendant that if he or she fails to appear 34
and show cause at the time and place specified by the order the court 35
may order the sheriff to restore possession of the property to the 36
plaintiff and may grant such other relief as may be prayed for in the 37
complaint and provided by this chapter. 38
p. 17 HB 2699
(2) Where the basis for an unlawful detainer action is, in full 1
or in part, a notice issued pursuant to RCW 59.18.650(2)(c), the 2
plaintiff may apply ex parte to the court to request that the hearing 3
described in RCW 59.18.380 be expedited. The application for the 4
expedited hearing must detail justifications for the expedited 5
hearing, including any health, safety, and welfare concerns related 6
to the defendant's conduct along with any supporting facts. Notice of 7
the request for the expedited hearing and notice of any court order 8
granting the expedited hearing shall be served in a manner consistent 9
with RCW 59.12.040 not less than one court day before the expedited 10
hearing to the defendant and the defendant's attorney, if the 11
defendant has legal representation, or to the defendant and the local 12
legal aid organization that receives funding to provide legal 13
representation to indigent tenants under RCW 59.18.640, if the 14
defendant does not have legal representation.15
(3) The procedure for service of an order, summons and complaint, 16
notice, or other document required under this section to a local 17
legal aid organization may be established by local court rule. The 18
legislature intends that service on legal aid organizations be 19
performed according to best local practice.20
Sec. 4. RCW 59.18.380 and 2011 c 132 s 18 are each amended to 21
read as follows: 22
((At)) (1)(a) Except as provided in (b) of this subsection, at 23
the time and place fixed for the hearing of plaintiff's motion for a 24
writ of restitution, the defendant, or any person in possession or 25
claiming possession of the property, may answer, orally or in 26
writing, and assert any legal or equitable defense or set-off arising 27
out of the tenancy. 28
(b) If the defendant retains an attorney then the defendant shall 29
provide an answer in writing prior to the first show cause hearing in 30
accordance with deadlines found in the civil or local rules, 31
whichever controls, and answer by:32
(i) Marking or documenting affirmative defenses;33
(ii) Submitting a plan for repayment, if the case involves 34
nonpayment of rent; and35
(iii) Retaining the right to make affirmative defenses at the 36
time of the hearing.37
(2) If the answer is oral the substance thereof shall be endorsed 38
on the complaint by the court. The court shall examine the parties 39
p. 18 HB 2699
and witnesses orally to ascertain the merits of the complaint and 1
answer, and if it shall appear that the plaintiff has the right to be 2
restored to possession of the property, the court shall enter an 3
order directing the issuance of a writ of restitution, returnable ten 4
days after its date, restoring to the plaintiff possession of the 5
property and if it shall appear to the court that there is no 6
substantial issue of material fact of the right of the plaintiff to 7
be granted other relief as prayed for in the complaint and provided 8
for in this chapter, the court may enter an order and judgment 9
granting so much of such relief as may be sustained by the proof, and 10
the court may grant such other relief as may be prayed for in the 11
plaintiff's complaint and provided for in this chapter, then the 12
court shall enter an order denying any relief sought by the plaintiff 13
for which the court has determined that the plaintiff has no right as 14
a matter of law: PROVIDED, That within three days after the service 15
of the writ of restitution issued prior to final judgment, the 16
defendant, or person in possession of the property, may, in any 17
action for the recovery of possession of the property for failure to 18
pay rent, stay the execution of the writ pending final judgment by 19
paying into court or to the plaintiff, as the court directs, all rent 20
found to be due, and in addition by paying, on a monthly basis 21
pending final judgment, an amount equal to the monthly rent called 22
for by the lease or rental agreement at the time the complaint was 23
filed: PROVIDED FURTHER, That before any writ shall issue prior to 24
final judgment the plaintiff shall execute to the defendant and file 25
in the court a bond in such sum as the court may order, with 26
sufficient surety to be approved by the clerk, conditioned that the 27
plaintiff will prosecute his or her action without delay, and will 28
pay all costs that may be adjudged to the defendant, and all damages 29
which he or she may sustain by reason of the writ of restitution 30
having been issued, should the same be wrongfully sued out. The court 31
shall also enter an order directing the parties to proceed to trial 32
on the complaint and answer in the usual manner. 33
(3) If it appears to the court that the plaintiff should not be 34
restored to possession of the property, the court shall deny 35
plaintiff's motion for a writ of restitution and enter an order 36
directing the parties to proceed to trial within thirty days on the 37
complaint and answer. If it appears to the court that there is a 38
substantial issue of material fact as to whether or not the plaintiff 39
is entitled to other relief as is prayed for in plaintiff's complaint 40
p. 19 HB 2699
and provided for in this chapter, or that there is a genuine issue of 1
a material fact pertaining to a legal or equitable defense or set-off 2
raised in the defendant's answer, the court shall grant or deny so 3
much of plaintiff's other relief sought and so much of defendant's 4
defenses or set-off claimed, as may be proper. 5
Sec. 5. RCW 59.18.640 and 2021 c 115 s 8 are each amended to 6
read as follows: 7
(1) Subject to the availability of amounts appropriated for this 8
specific purpose, the court must appoint an attorney for an indigent 9
tenant in an unlawful detainer proceeding under this chapter and 10
chapter((s 59.12 and)) 59.20 RCW. The office of civil legal aid is 11
responsible for implementation of this subsection as provided in RCW 12
2.53.050, and the state shall pay the costs of legal services 13
provided by an attorney appointed pursuant to this subsection. In 14
implementing this section, the office of civil legal aid shall assign 15
priority to providing legal representation to indigent tenants in 16
those counties in which the most evictions occur and to indigent 17
tenants who are disproportionately at risk of eviction.18
(2) For purposes of this section, "indigent" means any person 19
who, at any stage of a court proceeding, is: 20
(a) Receiving one of the following types of public assistance: 21
Temporary assistance for needy families, aged, blind, or disabled 22
assistance benefits, medical care services under RCW 74.09.035, 23
pregnant women assistance benefits, poverty-related veterans' 24
benefits, food stamps or food stamp benefits transferred 25
electronically, refugee resettlement benefits, medicaid, or 26
supplemental security income; or 27
(b) Receiving an annual income, after taxes, of 200 percent or 28
less of the current federally established poverty level.29
(3) An organization that receives funding from the office of 30
civil legal aid to provide legal services to an indigent tenant under 31
this section must obtain and maintain a copy of a general rule 34 32
statement or other document certifying that the tenant is indigent 33
and qualifies for legal representation under this section as a 34
condition of receiving future funding from the office of civil legal 35
aid.36
Sec. 6. RCW 59.18.057 and 2023 c 336 s 3 are each amended to 37
read as follows: 38
p. 20 HB 2699
(1) Every 14-day notice served pursuant to RCW 59.12.030(3) must 1
be in substantially the following form: 2
3 "TO:
4 AND TO:
5 ADDRESS:
FOURTEEN-DAY NOTICE TO PAY RENT OR VACATE THE PREMISES6
You are receiving this notice because the landlord alleges you 7
are not in compliance with the terms of the lease agreement by 8
failing to pay rent and/or utilities and/or recurring or periodic 9
charges that are past due. 10
(1) Monthly rent due for (list month(s)): $ (dollar amount)11
AND/OR12
(2) Utilities due for (list month(s)): $ (dollar amount)13
AND/OR14
(3) Other recurring or periodic charges identified in the lease 15
for (list month(s)): $ (dollar amount)16
TOTAL AMOUNT DUE: $ (dollar amount)17
Note - payment must be made pursuant to the terms of the rental 18
agreement or by nonelectronic means including, but not limited to, 19
cashier's check, money order, or other certified funds.20
You must pay the total amount due to your landlord within 21
fourteen (14) days after service of this notice or you must vacate 22
the premises. Any payment you make to the landlord must first be 23
applied to the total amount due as shown on this notice. Any failure 24
to comply with this notice within fourteen (14) days after service of 25
this notice may result in a judicial proceeding that leads to your 26
eviction from the premises. 27
The Washington state Office of the Attorney General has this 28
notice in multiple languages as well as information on available 29
resources to help you pay your rent, including state and local rental 30
assistance programs, on its website at www.atg.wa.gov/landlord-31
tenant. 32
State law provides you the right to legal representation and the 33
court may be able to appoint a lawyer to represent you without cost 34
to you if you are a qualifying low-income renter. If you believe you 35
are a qualifying low-income renter and would like an attorney 36
appointed to represent you, please contact the Eviction Defense 37
Screening Line at 855-657-8387 or apply online at https://38
p. 21 HB 2699
nwjustice.org/apply-online. For additional resources, call 2-1-1 or 1
the Northwest Justice Project CLEAR Hotline outside King County (888) 2
201-1014 weekdays between 9:15 a.m. – 12:15 p.m., or (888) 387-7111 3
for seniors (age 60 and over). You may find additional information to 4
help you at http://www.washingtonlawhelp.org. ((Free or low-cost 5
mediation services to assist in nonpayment of rent disputes before 6
any judicial proceedings occur are also available at dispute 7
resolution centers throughout the state. You can find your nearest 8
dispute resolution center at https://www.resolutionwa.org.))9
State law also provides you the right to receive interpreter 10
services at court.11
12
OWNER/LANDLORD:___________DATE:______________ 13
14
WHERE TOTAL AMOUNT DUE IS TO BE PAID: ___(owner/landlord name)___15
___________(address)________" 16
(2) The form required in this section does not abrogate any 17
additional notice requirements to tenants as required by federal, 18
state, or local law. 19
Sec. 7. RCW 59.18.365 and 2021 c 115 s 11 are each amended to 20
read as follows: 21
(1) The summons must contain the names of the parties to the 22
proceeding, the attorney or attorneys if any, the court in which the 23
same is brought, the nature of the action, in concise terms, and the 24
relief sought, and also the return day; and must notify the defendant 25
to appear and answer within the time designated or that the relief 26
sought will be taken against him or her. The summons must contain a 27
street address for service of the notice of appearance or answer and, 28
if available, a facsimile number for the plaintiff or the plaintiff's 29
attorney, if represented. The summons must be served and returned in 30
the same manner as a summons in other actions is served and returned.31
(2) A defendant may serve a copy of an answer or notice of 32
appearance by any of the following methods: 33
(a) By delivering a copy of the answer or notice of appearance to 34
the person who signed the summons at the street address listed on the 35
summons; 36
p. 22 HB 2699
(b) By mailing a copy of the answer or notice of appearance 1
addressed to the person who signed the summons to the street address 2
listed on the summons; 3
(c) By facsimile to the facsimile number listed on the summons. 4
Service by facsimile is complete upon successful transmission to the 5
facsimile number listed upon the summons; 6
(d) As otherwise authorized by the superior court civil rules.7
(3) The summons for unlawful detainer actions for tenancies 8
covered by this chapter shall be substantially in the following form:9
IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF THE 10
STATE OF WASHINGTON 11
IN AND 12
FOR . . . . . . COUNTY 13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
Plaintiff/
Landlord/
Owner,







NO.
21
22
vs. EVICTION SUMMONS
(Residential)
23
24
25
Defendant/
Tenant/
Occupant.
THIS IS AN IMPORTANT LEGAL DOCUMENT TO EVICT YOU.26
YOUR WRITTEN27
RESPONSE MUST BE RECEIVED BY: 5:00 p.m., on . . . . . . . . .28
TO: . . . . . . . . . . . . (Defendant's Name) 29
. . . . . . . . . . . . (Defendant's Address) 30
GET HELP: If you do not respond by the deadline above, you will 31
lose your right to defend yourself or be represented by a lawyer if 32
you cannot afford one in court and could be evicted. The court may be 33
able to appoint a lawyer to represent you without cost to you if you 34
are low-income and are unable to afford a lawyer. If you believe you 35
are a qualifying low-income renter and would like an attorney 36
appointed to represent you, please contact the Eviction Defense 37
p. 23 HB 2699
Screening Line at 855-657-8387 or apply online at https://1
nwjustice.org/apply-online. For additional resources, you may call 2
2-1-1 or the Northwest Justice Project CLEAR Hotline outside King 3
County (888) 201-1014 weekdays between 9:15 a.m. – 12:15 p.m., or 4
(888) 387-7111 for seniors (age 60 and over). You may find additional 5
information to help you at http://www.washingtonlawhelp.org. ((Free 6
or low-cost mediation services to assist in nonpayment of rent 7
disputes before any judicial proceedings occur are also available at 8
dispute resolution centers throughout the state. You can find your 9
nearest dispute resolution center at https://www.resolutionwa.org.))10
HOW TO RESPOND: Phone calls to your Landlord or your Landlord's 11
lawyer are not a response. You may respond with a "notice of 12
appearance." This is a letter that includes the following:13
(1) A statement that you are appearing in the court case14
(2) Names of the landlord(s) and the tenant(s) (as listed above)15
(3) Your name, your address where legal documents may be sent, 16
your signature, phone number (if any), and case number (if the case 17
is filed) 18
This case □ is / □ is not filed with the court. If this case is 19
filed, you need to also file your response with the court by 20
delivering a copy to the clerk of the court at: . . . . . . . . . . . 21
(Clerk's Office/Address/Room number/Business hours of court clerk)22
WHERE TO RESPOND: You must mail, fax, or hand deliver your 23
response letter to your Landlord's lawyer, or if no lawyer is named 24
in the complaint, to your Landlord. If you mail the response letter, 25
you must do it 3 days before the deadline above. Request receipt of a 26
proof of mailing from the post office. If you hand deliver or fax it, 27
you must do it by the deadline above. The address is:28
. . . . . . . . . (Attorney/Landlord Name) 29
. . . . . . . . . (Address)30
. . . . . . . . . (Fax - required if available)31
COURT DATE: If you respond to this Summons, you will be notified 32
of your hearing date in a document called an "Order to Show Cause." 33
This is usually mailed to you. If you get notice of a hearing, you 34
must go to the hearing . If you do not show up, your landlord can 35
evict you. Your landlord might also charge you more money. If you 36
move before the court date, you must tell your landlord or the 37
landlord's attorney. 38
p. 24 HB 2699
Sec. 8. RCW 59.18.630 and 2021 c 115 s 4 are each amended to 1
read as follows: 2
(1) The eviction moratorium instituted by the governor of the 3
state of Washington's proclamation 20-19.6 shall end on June 30, 4
2021. 5
(2) If a tenant has remaining unpaid rent that accrued between 6
March 1, 2020, and six months following the expiration of the 7
eviction moratorium or the end of the public health emergency, 8
whichever is greater, the landlord must offer the tenant a reasonable 9
schedule for repayment of the unpaid rent that does not exceed 10
monthly payments equal to one-third of the monthly rental charges 11
during the period of accrued debt. If a tenant fails to accept the 12
terms of a reasonable repayment plan within 14 days of the landlord's 13
offer, the landlord may proceed with an unlawful detainer action as 14
set forth in RCW 59.12.030(3) ((but subject to any requirements under 15
the eviction resolution pilot program established under RCW 16
59.18.660)). If the tenant defaults on any rent owed under a 17
repayment plan, the landlord may apply for reimbursement from the 18
landlord mitigation program as authorized under RCW 43.31.605(1)19
(((d))) (c) or proceed with an unlawful detainer action as set forth 20
in RCW 59.12.030(3) ((but subject to any requirements under the 21
eviction resolution pilot program established under RCW 59.18.660)). 22
The court must consider the tenant's circumstances, including 23
decreased income or increased expenses due to COVID-19, and the 24
repayment plan terms offered during any unlawful detainer proceeding.25
(3) Any repayment plan entered into under this section must:26
(a) Not require payment until 30 days after the repayment plan is 27
offered to the tenant; 28
(b) Cover rent only and not any late fees, attorneys' fees, or 29
any other fees and charges; 30
(c) Allow for payments from any source of income as defined in 31
RCW 59.18.255(5) or from pledges by nonprofit organizations, 32
churches, religious institutions, or governmental entities; and33
(d) Not include provisions or be conditioned on: The tenant's 34
compliance with the rental agreement, payment of attorneys' fees, 35
court costs, or other costs related to litigation if the tenant 36
defaults on the rental agreement; a requirement that the tenant apply 37
for governmental benefits or provide proof of receipt of governmental 38
benefits; or the tenant's waiver of any rights to a notice under RCW 39
p. 25 HB 2699
59.12.030 or related provisions before a writ of restitution is 1
issued. 2
(4) It is a defense to an eviction under RCW 59.12.030(3) that a 3
landlord did not offer a repayment plan in conformity with this 4
section. 5
(5) To the extent available funds exist for rental assistance 6
from a federal, state, local, private, or nonprofit program, the 7
tenant or landlord may continue to seek rental assistance to reduce 8
and/or eliminate the unpaid rent balance. 9
Sec. 9. RCW 59.18.410 and 2023 c 336 s 2 are each amended to 10
read as follows: 11
(1) If at trial the verdict of the jury or, if the case is tried 12
without a jury, the finding of the court is in favor of the landlord 13
and against the tenant, judgment shall be entered for the restitution 14
of the premises; and if the proceeding is for unlawful detainer after 15
neglect or failure to perform any condition or covenant of a lease or 16
agreement under which the property is held, or after default in the 17
payment of rent, the judgment shall also declare the forfeiture of 18
the lease, agreement, or tenancy. The jury, or the court, if the 19
proceedings are tried without a jury, shall also assess the damages 20
arising out of the tenancy occasioned to the landlord by any forcible 21
entry, or by any forcible or unlawful detainer, alleged in the 22
complaint and proved at trial, and, if the alleged unlawful detainer 23
is based on default in the payment of rent, find the amount of any 24
rent due, and the judgment shall be rendered against the tenant 25
liable for the forcible entry, forcible detainer, or unlawful 26
detainer for the amount of damages thus assessed, for the rent, if 27
any, found due, and late fees if such fees are due under the lease 28
and do not exceed $75 in total. The landlord is not entitled to a 29
judgment for rent unless the basis for the unlawful detainer action 30
was nonpayment of rent. The court may award statutory costs. The 31
court may also award reasonable attorneys' fees as provided in RCW 32
59.18.290. 33
(2) When the tenant is liable for unlawful detainer after a 34
default in the payment of rent, execution upon the judgment shall not 35
occur until the expiration of five court days after the entry of the 36
judgment. Before entry of a judgment or until five court days have 37
expired after entry of the judgment, unless the tenant provides a 38
pledge of financial assistance letter from a government or nonprofit 39
p. 26 HB 2699
entity, in which case the tenant has until the date of eviction, the 1
tenant or any subtenant, or any mortgagee of the term, or other party 2
interested in the continuance of the tenancy, may pay into court or 3
to the landlord the amount of the rent due, any court costs incurred 4
at the time of payment, late fees if such fees are due under the 5
lease and do not exceed $75 in total, and attorneys' fees if awarded, 6
in which event any judgment entered shall be satisfied and the tenant 7
restored to his or her tenancy. If the tenant seeks to restore his or 8
her tenancy after entry of a judgment, the tenant may tender the 9
amount stated within the judgment as long as that amount does not 10
exceed the amount authorized under subsection (1) of this section. If 11
a tenant seeks to restore his or her tenancy and pay the amount set 12
forth in this subsection with funds acquired through an emergency 13
rental assistance program provided by a governmental or nonprofit 14
entity, the tenant shall provide a copy of the pledge of emergency 15
rental assistance provided from the appropriate governmental or 16
nonprofit entity and have an opportunity to exercise such rights 17
under this subsection, which may include a stay of judgment and 18
provision by the landlord of documentation necessary for processing 19
the assistance. The landlord shall accept any pledge of emergency 20
rental assistance funds provided to the tenant from a governmental or 21
nonprofit entity before the expiration of any pay or vacate notice 22
for nonpayment of rent for the full amount of the rent owing under 23
the rental agreement. The landlord shall accept any written pledge of 24
emergency rental assistance funds provided to the tenant from a 25
governmental or nonprofit entity after the expiration of the pay or 26
vacate notice if the pledge will contribute to the total payment of 27
both the amount of rent due, including any current rent, and other 28
amounts if required under this subsection. The landlord shall suspend 29
any court action for 14 court days after providing necessary payment 30
information to the nonprofit or governmental entity to allow for 31
payment of the emergency rental assistance funds. ((By accepting such 32
pledge of emergency rental assistance, the landlord is not required 33
to enter into any additional conditions not related to the provision 34
of necessary payment information and documentation. )) A governmental 35
or nonprofit entity administering emergency rental assistance funds 36
may not require a landlord to accept any conditions that conflict 37
with this chapter in order to receive the emergency rental assistance 38
funds. If a judgment has been satisfied, the landlord shall file a 39
satisfaction of judgment with the court. A tenant seeking to exercise 40
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rights under this subsection shall pay an additional $50 for each 1
time the tenant was reinstated after judgment pursuant to this 2
subsection within the previous 12 months prior to payment. If payment 3
of the amount specified in this subsection is not made within five 4
court days after the entry of the judgment, the judgment may be 5
enforced for its full amount and for the possession of the premises.6
(3)(a) Following the entry of a judgment in favor of the landlord 7
and against the tenant for the restitution of the premises and 8
forfeiture of the tenancy due to nonpayment of rent, the court, at 9
the time of the show cause hearing or trial, or upon subsequent 10
motion of the tenant but before the execution of the writ of 11
restitution, may stay the writ of restitution upon good cause and on 12
such terms that the court deems fair and just for both parties. In 13
making this decision, the court shall consider evidence of the 14
following factors: 15
(i) The tenant's willful or intentional default or intentional 16
failure to pay rent; 17
(ii) Whether nonpayment of the rent was caused by exigent 18
circumstances that were beyond the tenant's control and that are not 19
likely to recur; 20
(iii) The tenant's ability and plan to timely pay the judgment 21
within six months; 22
(iv) The tenant's payment history; 23
(v) Whether the tenant is otherwise in substantial compliance 24
with the rental agreement; 25
(vi) Hardship on the tenant if evicted; ((and))26
(vii) Conduct related to other notices served within the last six 27
months; and28
(viii) Whether the tenant has previously received any emergency 29
rental assistance funds. 30
(b) The burden of proof for such relief under this subsection (3) 31
shall be on the tenant. If the tenant seeks relief pursuant to this 32
subsection (3) at the time of the show cause hearing, the court shall 33
hear the matter at the time of the show cause hearing or as 34
expeditiously as possible so as to avoid unnecessary delay or 35
hardship on the parties. 36
(c) In any order issued pursuant to this subsection (3):37
(i) The court shall not stay the writ of restitution more than 38
((90 days )) six months from the date of order, but may order 39
repayment of the judgment balance within such time. ((If the payment 40
p. 28 HB 2699
plan is to exceed 30 days, the total cumulative payments for each 30-1
day period following the order shall be no less than one month of the 2
tenant's share of the rent, and the total amount of the judgment and 3
all additional rent that is due shall be paid within 90 days )) The 4
court may order a repayment plan in which the minimum monthly 5
repayment amount is $100 per month. However, the court may grant a 6
repayment plan with a higher monthly repayment amount, not to exceed 7
one month's rent, as necessary to achieve repayment on the back-owed 8
rent within six months. Following a hearing on repayment, the court 9
shall order the issuance of a writ or the expiration of a stay if the 10
court determines that repayment is not possible because the back-owed 11
balance exceeds six months' rent, unless the court determines that 12
rental assistance will be available and may satisfy the balance in a 13
repayment period of less than six months. If the court ordered a 14
judgment that included fees and costs, including late fees, or 15
reserved judgment on such issues, the court shall not include such 16
fees in the repayment plan amount. The repayment plan described in 17
this section shall only apply to back-owed rent. If a tenant 18
successfully repays under this section, the court shall sign an order 19
waiving any fees and costs. If a tenant defaults on a repayment plan 20
under this section, the court may award fees and costs, including 21
late fees, to the landlord. 22
(ii) Within any payment plan ordered by the court, the court 23
shall require the tenant to pay to the landlord or to the court one 24
month's rent within five court days of issuance of the order. If the 25
date of the order is on or before the 15th of the month, the tenant 26
shall remain current with ongoing rental payments as they become due 27
for the duration of the payment plan; if the date of the order is 28
after the 15th of the month, the tenant shall have the option to 29
apportion the following month's rental payment within the payment 30
plan, but monthly rental payments thereafter shall be paid according 31
to the rental agreement. 32
(iii) The sheriff may serve the writ of restitution upon the 33
tenant before the expiration of the five court days of issuance of 34
the order; however, the sheriff shall not execute the writ of 35
restitution until after expiration of the five court days in order 36
for payment to be made of one month's rent as required by (c)(ii) of 37
this subsection. In the event payment is made as provided in (c)(ii) 38
of this subsection for one month's rent, the court shall stay the 39
writ of restitution ex parte without prior notice to the landlord 40
p. 29 HB 2699
upon the tenant filing and presenting a motion to stay with a 1
declaration of proof of payment demonstrating full compliance with 2
the required payment of one month's rent. Any order staying the writ 3
of restitution under this subsection (3)(c)(iii) shall require the 4
tenant to serve a copy of the order on the landlord by personal 5
delivery, first-class mail, facsimile, or email if agreed to by the 6
parties. 7
(A) If the tenant has satisfied (c)(ii) of this subsection by 8
paying one month's rent within five court days, but defaults on a 9
subsequent payment required by the court pursuant to this subsection 10
(3)(c), the landlord may enforce the writ of restitution after 11
serving a notice of default in accordance with RCW 59.12.040 12
informing the tenant that he or she has defaulted on rent due under 13
the lease agreement or payment plan entered by the court. Upon 14
service of the notice of default, the tenant shall have three 15
calendar days from the date of service to vacate the premises before 16
the sheriff may execute the writ of restitution. 17
(B) If the landlord serves the notice of default described under 18
this subsection (3)(c)(iii), an additional day is not included in 19
calculating the time before the sheriff may execute the writ of 20
restitution. The notice of default must be in substantially the 21
following form: 22
NOTICE OF DEFAULT FOR RENT AND/OR PAYMENT PLAN ORDERED BY COURT23
NAME(S)24
ADDRESS 25
CITY, STATE, ZIP 26
THIS IS NOTICE THAT YOU ARE IN DEFAULT OF YOUR RENT AND/OR 27
PAYMENT PLAN ORDERED BY THE COURT. YOUR LANDLORD HAS RECEIVED THE 28
FOLLOWING PAYMENTS: 29
DATE 30
AMOUNT 31
DATE 32
AMOUNT 33
DATE 34
AMOUNT 35
THE LANDLORD MAY SCHEDULE YOUR PHYSICAL EVICTION WITHIN THREE 36
CALENDAR DAYS OF SERVICE OF THIS NOTICE. TO STOP A PHYSICAL 37
p. 30 HB 2699
EVICTION, YOU ARE REQUIRED TO PAY THE BALANCE OF YOUR RENT AND/OR 1
PAYMENT PLAN IN THE AMOUNT OF $. . . . .. 2
PAYMENT MAY BE MADE TO THE COURT OR TO THE LANDLORD. IF YOU FAIL 3
TO PAY THE BALANCE WITHIN THREE CALENDAR DAYS, THE LANDLORD MAY 4
PROCEED WITH A PHYSICAL EVICTION FOR POSSESSION OF THE UNIT THAT 5
YOU ARE RENTING. 6
DATE 7
SIGNATURE 8
LANDLORD/AGENT 9
NAME 10
ADDRESS 11
PHONE 12
(iv) If a tenant seeks to satisfy a condition of this subsection 13
(3)(c) by relying on an emergency rental assistance program provided 14
by a government or nonprofit entity and provides an offer of proof, 15
the court shall stay the writ of restitution as necessary to afford 16
the tenant an equal opportunity to comply. 17
(v) The court shall extend the writ of restitution as necessary 18
to enforce the order issued pursuant to this subsection (3)(c) in the 19
event of default. 20
(d) A tenant who has been served with three or more notices to 21
pay or vacate for failure to pay rent as set forth in RCW 59.12.040 22
within twelve months prior to the notice to pay or vacate upon which 23
the proceeding is based may not seek relief under this subsection 24
(3), unless the court determines any of the notices served were 25
invalid or did not otherwise comply with the requirements of this 26
chapter. 27
(e)(i) In any application seeking relief pursuant to this 28
subsection (3) by either the tenant or landlord, the court shall 29
issue a finding as to whether the tenant is low-income, limited 30
resourced, or experiencing hardship to determine if the parties would 31
be eligible for disbursement through the landlord mitigation program 32
account established within RCW 43.31.605(1)(b). In making this 33
finding, the court may include an inquiry regarding the tenant's 34
income relative to area median income, household composition, any 35
extenuating circumstances, or other factors, and may rely on written 36
declarations or oral testimony by the parties at the hearing.37
(ii) After a finding that the tenant is low-income, limited 38
resourced, or experiencing hardship, the court may issue an order: 39
p. 31 HB 2699
(A) Finding that the landlord is eligible to receive on behalf of the 1
tenant and may apply for reimbursement from the landlord mitigation 2
program; and (B) directing the clerk to remit, without further order 3
of the court, any future payments made by the tenant in order to 4
reimburse the department of commerce pursuant to RCW 5
43.31.605(1)(b)(iii). In accordance with RCW 43.31.605(1)(b), such an 6
order must be accompanied by a copy of the order staying the writ of 7
restitution. Nothing in this subsection (3)(e) shall be deemed to 8
obligate the department of commerce to provide assistance in claim 9
reimbursement through the landlord mitigation program if there are 10
not sufficient funds. 11
(iii) If the department of commerce fails to disburse payment to 12
the landlord for the judgment pursuant to this subsection (3)(e) 13
within 30 days from submission of the application, the landlord may 14
renew an application for a writ of restitution pursuant to RCW 15
59.18.370 and for other rent owed by the tenant since the time of 16
entry of the prior judgment. In such event, the tenant may exercise 17
rights afforded under this section. 18
(iv) Upon payment by the department of commerce to the landlord 19
for the remaining or total amount of the judgment, as applicable, the 20
judgment is satisfied and the landlord shall file a satisfaction of 21
judgment with the court. 22
(v) Nothing in this subsection (3)(e) prohibits the landlord from 23
otherwise applying for reimbursement for an unpaid judgment pursuant 24
to RCW 43.31.605(1)(b) after the tenant defaults on a payment plan 25
ordered pursuant to (c) of this subsection. 26
(vi) If a tenant demonstrates an ability to pay in order to 27
reinstate the tenancy by means of disbursement through the landlord 28
mitigation program account established within RCW 43.31.605(1)(b):29
(A) Any restrictions imposed under (d) of this subsection do not 30
apply in determining if a tenant is eligible for reinstatement under 31
this subsection (3); and 32
(B) Reimbursement on behalf of the tenant to the landlord under 33
RCW 43.31.605(1)(b) may include up to three months of prospective 34
rent to stabilize the tenancy as determined by the court.35
(4) If a tenant seeks to stay a writ of restitution issued 36
pursuant to this chapter, the court may issue an ex parte stay of the 37
writ of restitution provided the tenant or tenant's attorney submits 38
a declaration indicating good faith efforts were made to notify the 39
other party or, if no efforts were made, why notice could not be 40
p. 32 HB 2699
provided prior to the application for an ex parte stay, and 1
describing the immediate or irreparable harm that may result if an 2
immediate stay is not granted. The court shall require service of the 3
order and motion to stay the writ of restitution by personal 4
delivery, mail, facsimile, or other means most likely to afford all 5
parties notice of the court date. 6
(5) In all other cases the judgment may be enforced immediately. 7
If a writ of restitution shall have been executed prior to judgment 8
no further writ or execution for the premises shall be required.9
(6) This section also applies if the writ of restitution is 10
issued pursuant to a final judgment entered after a show cause 11
hearing conducted in accordance with RCW 59.18.380.12
Sec. 10. RCW 59.18.063 and 2022 c 95 s 1 are each amended to 13
read as follows: 14
(1) A landlord must accept a personal check, cashier's check, or 15
money order for any payment of rent made by a tenant, except that a 16
landlord is not required to accept a personal check from any tenant 17
that has had a personal check written to the landlord or the 18
landlord's agent that has been returned for nonsufficient funds or 19
account closure within the previous nine months. A landlord must also 20
allow for the tenant to submit a rental payment by mail unless the 21
landlord provides an accessible, on-site location.22
(2) A landlord may refuse to accept cash for any payment of rent 23
made by a tenant, but shall provide a receipt for any payment made by 24
a tenant in the form of cash when the landlord accepts cash.25
(3) A landlord shall provide, upon the request of a tenant, a 26
written receipt for any payments made by the tenant in a form other 27
than cash. 28
(4) In the event of a late rental payment, a landlord must 29
continue to make available to the tenant any means of payment agreed 30
upon in the rental agreement and any means of payment previously 31
accepted by the landlord from the tenant during the duration of the 32
tenancy, subject to the provisions of this section.33
NEW SECTION. Sec. 11. A new section is added to chapter 59.18 34
RCW to read as follows: 35
(1) Except upon written agreement of the landlord and tenant, any 36
partial payment of past due rent made by the tenant or accepted by 37
the landlord does not constitute, nor may it be construed as, a 38
p. 33 HB 2699
reinstatement of the lease, and is not grounds for dismissal of any 1
pending unlawful detainer proceeding. 2
(2) Any partial payment of the amount owed in an unlawful 3
detainer action does not alter, amend, or extend the five court day 4
deadline for full payment under RCW 59.18.410. 5
NEW SECTION. Sec. 12. Section 1 of this act expires January 1, 6
2028.7
NEW SECTION. Sec. 13. Section 2 of this act takes effect 8
January 1, 2028.9
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