Local Rental Housing Regulation Watch

RHAWA is working hard to keep track of the ever-changing landscape of rental housing regulation in various jurisdictions across Washington State. Feedback from the membership regarding these issues, or any other issue not mentioned below, is welcomed, and encouraged. Member participation in local government affairs is vital to letting the government know RHAWA and rental housing providers and managers are an important group at both the State and local level that we provide a vital service to our communities. Contact Tim Hatley at (206) 905-0601 or at thatley@RHAwa.org. If you would like to get involved in any of our advocacy efforts, contact Daniel Bannon at (206) 905-0609 or at dbannon@RHAwa.org. 

Over the next few months expect a blitz of local government interest in rent control bills which are scheduled for hearings this month in the Washington State Legislature. House Bill 2114 and Senate Bill 5961 are identical bills, one in the house and one in the senate. These bills eliminate the preemption language that has been state law for 40-years restricting local government from imposing rent control and establishes a statewide cap of rent increases at 5%, require 180-day notification for rent increase over 3%, limit move in fees to one month’s rent, and caps late fees at $10 – and of course these bills exempt new construction from any of these provisions for 10-years. Meaning, once again, mom-and-pop are on the hook while the whales swim away. 

Bellingham
New rental restriction laws took effect in Bellingham on January 1, 2024. These new provisions are based on passage of a voter approved measure on November 6, 2023. These new measures require 120-days (about 4 months)’ advance notice of rent increases and that rental housing providers provide relocation assistance if a rent increase is imposed of 8% or more. 
The relocation assistance must equal the sum of three times Bellingham’s current fair-market monthly rent as defined by the U.S. housing and Urban Development metrics, or three times that tenant’s existing monthly rent, whichever is larger, according to the proposal. This new voter-approved mandate becomes effective on January 27, 2024.

Housing providers in Bellingham will also see their registration fees double, as part of a revamp of an 8-year-old rental inspection program.

The current fee schedule gives rental housing providers a free pass for the first failed inspection but charges them $50 for all subsequent re-inspections. That will change to $100 for the first failed inspection, $200 for the second and $500 for the third. The fees for missed appointments will also increase incrementally under the new system.

After the changes take effect, owners of 20 units or less will pay $20 per unit, with larger buildings costing $16 per unit in annual registration fees. The fee increases become effective January 1, 2024.

Federal Way 
There has been no added information coming our way concerning proponents of new legislation requiring a 180 notice for any rent increase and imposing a $10 late fee cap attended a City Council Committee meeting advocating on behalf of the proposal. A spokesperson for the group claimed they had the support of 10 different community organizations, including the Low-Income Housing Coalition and Solid Ground. While no legislation has yet been introduced, efforts by tenant advocates to push new regulations is ongoing. Now that the holiday season has concluded and council members are once again taking the dais, we expect continued conversation on this proposal. 

Kenmore
There has been no new news on The Washington Business Properties Association (WBPA) suit filed in August in King County Superior Court against the City of Kenmore seeking declaratory relief over municipal ordinances that "conflict with and are preempted by state law and that improperly place unconstitutional burdens infringing upon the rights of rental housing providers to enter into and enforce the terms of residential lease relationships with tenants."

Specifically, the WBPA takes issue with two ordinances enacted by the city in 2022 as a suite of tenant protections. They aim to enshrine into city law "just cause eviction protection," capping fees and deposits, increasing notice for rent hikes, authorizing tenant payment plans and banning "abusive, deceptive, and unfair practices in rental housing."

The WBPA claims these ordinances are poorly written and run afoul of the state law.

Olympia
Effective March 1, 2024, Olympia will enact a new rental registry program based upon passage of legislation by the city on November 14. 

Rental properties in Olympia will be required to:
•    Register annually with the city (beginning March 1, 2024)
•    Obtain a business license from the Department of Revenue (beginning March 1, 2024)
•    Undergo an inspection by a certified third-party once every 5 years (beginning January 1, 2025)

Property owners will select and contract a third-party inspector from the City’s pre-approved list to complete the inspection of their units. A reinspection may be required if there are deficiencies or repairs that need to be completed. If serious safety concerns arise and a property is deemed uninhabitable, property owners may be required to pay relocation assistance to tenants who are displaced.

Seattle
Many business-oriented city hall watchers are hopeful that the crop of newly elected Seattle City Councilmembers will work to prevent the continuation of new restrictive rental housing regulations which have devastated the single-family and small multi-family housing industry in the city.  With five new members and a sixth that will soon be appointed by the council themselves, there is hope for equilibrium between the tenant and housing provider balance with the departure of anti-rental housing providers Kshama Sawant and Lisa Herbold. While we wish them well in their future endeavors their legacy as city council members will not be missed.

Instead, there appears to be a breath of fresh air and leadership as Councilmember Sara Nelson, who was elected Council President the first week of January, noted in a recent opinion piece in the Seattle Times that one of the challenges the city is facing is that “small housing providers selling their below-market-rate-rentals off the market”, echoing what RHAWA and even a recent City of Seattle Audit Report have been saying.