How much can a Washington landlord raise the rent?

No increase at all is permitted during the first 12 months of a tenancy, and any later 12-month increase is capped at seven per cent plus the consumer price index, or 10 per cent, whichever is less, under RCW 59.18.700. The Department of Commerce publishes the exact maximum for each calendar year, using the June 12-month percent change in CPI-U, all items, for the Seattle area from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The published maximum is 9.683 per cent for 2026 and 10 per cent for 2027. RCW 59.18.710 exempts new construction within 12 years of the first certificate of occupancy, certain nonprofit and public housing, tax-credit developments, and several owner-occupied situations.

How much notice must a Washington landlord give before raising rent?

Ninety days written notice under RCW 59.18.140(3)(a), raised from 60 days by 2025 c 209. A subsidized tenancy where rent is based on the tenant's income takes 30 days. Sixty days survives only as a transitional rule for a fixed-term agreement entered or renewed before 7 May 2025 that had between 60 and 90 days left to run on that date. The notice must also use the prescribed form in RCW 59.18.720(3) and be served under RCW 59.12.040.

Is there a security deposit limit in Washington?

No. Chapter 59.18 contains no residential deposit maximum. The one month's rent limit on combined move-in fees and deposits, two months where the tenant brings pets, that was created in 2025 sits in RCW 59.20.170 and belongs to the Manufactured and Mobile Home Landlord-Tenant Act, which governs lot rentals rather than dwelling units. What Washington does regulate is the precondition to collecting a deposit at all, where the money must be held, and what may be withheld.

How long does a Washington landlord have to return a security deposit?

Thirty days, not 21. RCW 59.18.280(1)(a) requires a full and specific statement of the basis for retaining any of the deposit, with the supporting documentation and any refund due, within 30 days after termination of the rental agreement and vacation of the premises, or within 30 days after the landlord learns of an abandonment. The 30-day period has applied since 2023 c 331. Missing it makes the landlord liable for the full amount of the deposit and bars any claim or defense for retaining it, and the court may award up to twice the deposit for an intentional refusal.

Can a Washington lease make the tenant pay the landlord's attorney fees?

No. RCW 59.18.230(2)(e) provides that no rental agreement may provide that the tenant agrees to pay the landlord's attorneys' fees, except as authorized in chapter 59.18 and awarded by a court pursuant to a judgment. That exception preserves fee awards the statute itself creates and a court makes; it does not license a lease clause, and a reciprocal prevailing-party clause does not cure it because the tenant is still agreeing to pay the landlord's fees. Knowingly using an agreement containing a prohibited provision costs actual damages, statutory damages of up to twice the monthly rent, costs and the tenant's fees under RCW 59.18.230(3).

How much notice must a Washington landlord give before entering?

At least two days written notice under RCW 59.18.150(6), and only one day to exhibit the unit to a prospective or actual purchaser or tenant. The notice must state the exact time and date or dates of entry, or specify the earliest and latest possible times within them, and must give the telephone number to which the tenant may communicate an objection or a request to reschedule. No notice is required in an emergency or on abandonment. After one written notification alleging a good-faith violation, each further violation costs up to one hundred dollars, with costs and attorneys' fees to the prevailing party.

What disclosures does Washington require in a residential lease?

Fire safety and protection information with the smoke detection notice, signed by both parties, under RCW 59.18.060(12); indoor mold information provided or approved by the Department of Health under RCW 59.18.060(14); landlord identification, plus an in-county agent where the landlord lives out of state, under RCW 59.18.060(16); the deposit terms, signed move-in checklist, written receipt and depository details under RCW 59.18.260 and RCW 59.18.270; a clear written statement that any nonrefundable fee is nonrefundable under RCW 59.18.285; and, where the landlord restricts window-mounted cooling devices, the notice required by RCW 59.18.740(8). Federal law adds lead-based paint for pre-1978 housing. A flood-risk disclosure at RCW 59.18.060(13) begins to apply to leases entered into after 31 December 2026.

Why do other Washington lease guides cite RCW 59.18.060(13) for mold?

Because they predate 2026 c 234. Substitute Senate Bill 6237 reenacted and amended RCW 59.18.060 effective 11 June 2026, inserting a flood-risk disclosure as new subsection (13). That pushed the mold duty from (13) to (14) and landlord identification from (15) to (16). The Code Reviser records the change in notes appended to RCW 59.18.070 and RCW 59.18.100, whose own cross-references were left pointing at the old numbers.

Can a Washington landlord charge a late fee?

Yes, but never for rent paid within five days after its due date. RCW 59.18.170(2) forbids a late fee inside that window, and RCW 59.18.230(2)(i) makes a lease term charging one a prohibited provision. If rent is more than five days late, fees may run from the first day after the due date. Washington caps no amount. The twenty dollars or twenty per cent figure quoted in several Washington lease guides comes from RCW 19.150.150, which is part of the Self-Service Storage Facilities act and speaks of an owner and an occupant of a storage space.

Does Washington require just cause to end a tenancy?

Yes. RCW 59.18.650(1)(a) bars a landlord from evicting, refusing to continue a tenancy or ending a periodic tenancy except for the causes enumerated in subsection (2). Two narrow no-cause windows survive: the end of an initial agreement of between six and 12 months, and the expiry of a fixed term of 12 months or more that has never been periodic, each on at least 60 days written notice. A wrongfully evicted tenant recovers the greater of their damages or three times the monthly rent, plus fees and costs.

How much notice does a Washington tenant give to move out?

Twenty days. RCW 59.18.200(1)(a) lets a tenant end a month-to-month or other periodic tenancy by written notice of 20 days or more preceding the end of any of the months or periods of tenancy, and RCW 59.18.650(1)(f) lets a tenant end a tenancy for a specified time by written notice not less than 20 days before the ending date. A servicemember receiving permanent change of station or deployment orders that do not allow 20 days may give less.

What notice comes before an eviction for unpaid rent in Washington?

A 14-day notice to pay rent or vacate, on a form prescribed by statute. RCW 59.12.030(3) sets 14 days for tenancies under chapter 59.18, against three days for tenancies outside it, and RCW 59.18.057(1) sets out the required form in full. It must itemise rent, utilities and other recurring charges separately by month, state that payment may be made by nonelectronic means, state that any payment applies first to the total shown, and carry the Attorney General's landlord-tenant address, the right-to-counsel paragraph with the Eviction Defense Screening Line, the 2-1-1 and CLEAR hotline information, washingtonlawhelp, and the dispute-resolution-centre address.

Can a Washington tenant withhold rent for repairs?

Not by withholding. RCW 59.18.100 is a repair-and-deduct remedy with two ceilings. Where the work does not require a licensed or registered person and costs no more than one month's rent, the tenant may do it and deduct the cost, capped at one month's rent per repair and one month's rent in any 12-month period. Where a licensed or registered person is needed, the tenant submits a good-faith written estimate first and may then deduct up to two months' rent per repair, also capped at two months' rent in any 12-month period. RCW 59.18.115 adds a court or escrow deposit route for certified substandard conditions.

Does a Washington lease need to be notarized?

No. RCW 64.04.010, as amended by 2024 c 27, provides that leases do not require acknowledgment, witness or seals, and that both signatures need be acknowledged only in order to record a lease or a memorandum of lease. The frequently repeated claim that a Washington lease longer than 12 months must be notarized does not reflect the current text. RCW 59.18.210 still reads that leases are valid for any term not exceeding one year without acknowledgment, witnesses or seals, so where a longer term is combined with an intention to record, have both signatures acknowledged and take Washington advice.

Is there rent control in Washington?

There is a statewide statutory limit on rent increases, and a preemption that stops cities creating their own. RCW 35.21.830 preempts cities and towns from regulating the amount of rent charged for residential rental structures or sites, and has done since 1981. It binds local government, never the Legislature. Since 7 May 2025 RCW 59.18.700 imposes the statewide increase limit described above, and by its own terms that section expires on 1 July 2040. So the claim that Washington has no rent regulation because of a 1981 preemption statute is out of date.

Can a Washington landlord stop a tenant installing a portable air conditioner?

Generally no, since 11 June 2026. RCW 59.18.740, created by 2026 c 184, provides that a landlord may not prohibit or restrict a tenant from installing a portable cooling device of the tenant's choosing and may not require a fee for its use, inspection or installation. Window-mounted devices may be restricted on five specific grounds, and where the landlord relies on one, RCW 59.18.740(8) requires the lease itself to notify tenants of their rights, responsibilities and the restriction. The tenant gives at least two days notice before installing a window-mounted device.

Does Washington protect a tenant from retaliation?

Yes, with a 90-day presumption and three counter-presumptions. RCW 59.18.240 forbids reprisal for a good-faith complaint to a governmental authority or for asserting rights under the chapter, and expressly names eviction, raising the rent, reducing services and increasing the tenant's obligations as reprisals. RCW 59.18.250 makes any such action within 90 days of the protected act a rebuttable presumption of retaliation. It then presumes the opposite where the tenant is in arrears at the time of a chapter 59.12 termination notice, presumes bad faith where the tenant complains within 90 days after a proposed rent increase, and creates no presumption at all against a rent increase whose notice specifies reasonable grounds.

What can a Washington landlord do with property left behind?

Store it, notify the tenant, and wait. RCW 59.18.310(2) lets the landlord take and store the property in a reasonably secure place, requires reasonable efforts to mail a notice giving the storage location and the date of sale or disposal, and requires the property to be returned on written request against the lesser of actual or reasonable drayage and storage costs. Sale or disposal may follow 45 days after that notice, or seven days where the property has a cumulative value of two hundred fifty dollars or less. Personal papers, family pictures and keepsakes are excluded from the shortened period. Excess sale proceeds are held for the tenant for one year.

Which Washington tenancies are exempt from the rent cap?

Seven categories in RCW 59.18.710(1): new construction within twelve years of the first certificate of occupancy; public housing authority, public development authority or qualifying nonprofit ownership with regulated rents; a qualified low-income development in that ownership; a federal tax-credit development under an enforceable Washington State Housing Finance Commission agreement; a unit where the tenant shares a bathroom or kitchen with an owner who lives at the property; an owner-occupied single-family residence letting no more than two units or bedrooms; and an owner-occupied duplex, triplex or fourplex where the occupancy continues. RCW 59.18.710(2) removes the last three where the owner is a real estate investment trust, a corporation, or a limited liability company with at least one corporate member. Supporting facts must be stated in the increase notice.

Does a Washington rent increase notice have to use a special form?

Yes. RCW 59.18.720(1)(a) requires a form substantially the same as the statutory “RENT AND FEE INCREASE NOTICE TO TENANTS” in subsection (3). It must give the effective date, the percentage, the additional dollar amount and the new total for rent and all other recurring or periodic charges, and tick one of three boxes stating whether the increase is below the maximum, at the maximum, or authorized by an exemption. Where an exemption is claimed the form contains a second certification block naming the exemption and requiring supporting facts or documents. The notice must also meet the RCW 59.18.140 timing and be served under RCW 59.12.040.

Why can't a Washington landlord take a deposit without a checklist?

Because RCW 59.18.260(2) says no deposit may be collected unless the rental agreement is in writing and a written checklist describing the condition and cleanliness of, or existing damage to, the premises, fixtures, equipment, appliances and furnishings is provided at the commencement of the tenancy, signed and dated by both parties. Walls including paint and wallpaper, carpets and other flooring, furniture and appliances are named in the statute. Collecting without it makes the landlord liable for the amount of the deposit under subsection (5), and RCW 59.18.280(1)(c)(iii) separately bars withholding for any item whose condition was not documented in it.

What if a Washington landlord misses the thirty-day deposit deadline?

RCW 59.18.280(2) makes the landlord liable for the full amount of the deposit and bars the landlord, in any action by the tenant to recover it, from asserting any claim or raising any defense for retaining any of it. The court may in its discretion award up to two times the deposit for an intentional refusal. The only escapes are circumstances beyond the landlord's control, or the tenant's abandonment as defined in RCW 59.18.310. The prevailing party in a deposit action recovers the cost of suit or arbitration including a reasonable attorneys' fee.

Which lease clauses are prohibited in Washington?

Ten, in RCW 59.18.230(2): waiving rights or remedies under the chapter; waiving the right to bring or join a cause of action including class actions; signing a nondisclosure agreement about the lease or the offer including rent, deposits, concessions, move-in gifts or lease specials; confession of judgment; agreeing to pay the landlord's attorneys' fees; exculpation, limitation of liability or indemnity; agreeing a particular arbitrator at the outset; agreeing to arbitrate unless the landlord pays the entire cost and the agreement is notarized; late fees inside five days; and rent payments through electronic means only. RCW 59.18.230(4) separately makes any lien on the tenant's personal property null and void.

What happens if a Washington landlord abuses the right of entry?

RCW 59.18.150(8) provides that a landlord or tenant who continues to violate the other's rights under the section, after being served with one written notification alleging in good faith violations and listing the date and time, is liable for up to one hundred dollars for each violation after receipt of that notice. The prevailing landlord or tenant may recover costs of the suit or arbitration and reasonable attorneys' fees. The first written notification is the operative document: without it, the per-violation liability does not start.

What is changing for Washington leases on 1 January 2027?

Two things. The flood-risk disclosure in RCW 59.18.060(13) begins to apply, by its own terms, to leases entered into after 31 December 2026. And 2026 c 55 takes effect, creating RCW 59.18.750, RCW 59.18.755 and RCW 59.18.760 for smart access systems: an alternative key on request that uses neither biometric identifier information nor a phone application, a written privacy policy delivered at the initial signing of a lease agreement or within five days of installation, and a closed list of the data such a system may collect. Both belong in any Washington lease signed from that date.

Where must a Washington security deposit be held?

In a trust account maintained for holding tenants' security deposits, at a financial institution or licensed escrow agent located in Washington, under RCW 59.18.270. The landlord must give a written receipt and written notice of the name, address and location of the depository, and of any change. Interest belongs to the landlord unless otherwise agreed in writing. On a transfer of the landlord's status the money transfers simultaneously; on a foreclosure where it does not, the foreclosed-upon owner must refund the full deposit immediately or face damages of up to twice the deposit. The tenant's claim ranks ahead of any creditor of the landlord even if the money was commingled.

What can a Washington landlord never deduct from a deposit?

Four things, under RCW 59.18.280(1)(c). Wear resulting from ordinary use. Carpet cleaning, unless the landlord documents wear to the carpet beyond ordinary use. The repair or replacement of fixtures, equipment, appliances and furnishings whose condition was not reasonably documented in the move-in checklist. And anything in excess of the cost of repairing or replacing the damaged portion where the item as a whole is not damaged. RCW 59.18.130(10) adds that a tenant who paid a nonrefundable cleaning fee may not be charged for normal cleaning.

How fast must a Washington landlord make repairs?

RCW 59.18.070 sets three deadlines from the tenant's written notice: twenty-four hours where the defect deprives the tenant of hot or cold water, heat or electricity, or is imminently hazardous to life; seventy-two hours where it deprives the tenant of a refrigerator, range and oven, or a major plumbing fixture supplied by the landlord; and ten days in all other cases. The landlord must commence remedial action as soon as possible and no later than those periods, and bears the burden of seeing the work completed promptly.

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Free Washington Residential Lease Agreement

Washington residential lease agreement walk-through

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A configurable Washington residential lease agreement that generates a signable multi-page PDF. Built to the Residential Landlord-Tenant Act — the RCW 59.18.700 rent-increase limit, ninety-day increase notice, a thirty-day deposit accounting, and the fee clause Washington prohibits.

Washington RCW ch. 59.18 Rent Increase Cap Just Cause Free PDF 2026 Edition

Updated Q3 2026 By Tenant Screening Background Check Editorial Team Scope Washington statewide ~22 min read

A Washington residential lease agreement is the written contract governed by the Washington Residential Landlord-Tenant Act at RCW chapter 59.18, with eviction handled separately under chapter 59.12. Washington has moved further and faster than almost any state in this series, and the pace is the problem: three separate 2025 and 2026 acts have rewritten what a compliant Washington lease has to say, and every free template currently ranking for this query was written before at least one of them. Since 7 May 2025 a landlord may not raise the rent at all in the first twelve months and may not raise it later by more than seven per cent plus the consumer price index, or ten per cent, whichever is less — a figure the Department of Commerce publishes each July rather than one written into any statute. Since the same act, the rent-increase notice is ninety days, not sixty, and it has to be given on a prescribed statutory form. Since 11 June 2026, RCW 59.18.740 stops a landlord banning a tenant’s portable air conditioner and, where window-mounted units are restricted, requires the lease itself to say so. And a 2026 act quietly renumbered the disclosure subsections, so every page still citing RCW 59.18.060(13) for mold is now citing the flood disclosure instead. Every figure below was verified on 6 August 2026 against the Washington State Legislature’s own codification, the enrolled session-law PDFs, the Code Reviser’s sections-affected tables for both years of the biennium, and the Department of Commerce’s own published rates.