How to become a landlord in Washington

When the lease is signed, give new tenants the written fire safety notice and the Department of Health's mold information, and name the landlord and the landlord's address in the lease or a notice posted on the premises. Taking a deposit requires a written lease that says when it may be kept and the signed move-in checklist, and leases entered into after December 31, 2026 need the flood hazard and insurance disclosure (RCW 59.18.060(12) to (16); RCW 59.18.260).

• Give each tenant who signs a written lease an executed copy; the tenant may ask for one free replacement copy (RCW 59.18.065).
• Tell the tenant in writing where the deposit is held (RCW 59.18.270).
• Any nonrefundable fee must be stated in writing as nonrefundable (RCW 59.18.285).
• A rent increase notice must use the statutory form; a fee in lieu of a deposit needs its own disclosure form (RCW 59.18.720; RCW 59.18.670(1)(f)).
• If you restrict window-mounted portable air conditioners on the grounds the statute allows, say so in the lease (RCW 59.18.740(8)).
• A lease may not waive the tenant's rights under chapter 59.18, bar class actions, require a nondisclosure agreement about its terms, confess judgment, have the tenant pay your attorneys' fees except as a court awards, limit or indemnify your liability under law, name an arbitrator in advance, or require arbitration unless you pay all its cost and the agreement is notarized. Knowingly using such a term can cost up to two months' rent in statutory damages (RCW 59.18.230(2), (3)).

Name the landlord and give the landlord's address to the tenant, either in the lease or in a notice conspicuously posted on the premises. Tell the tenant in writing right away of any change, by personal delivery, or by mail plus a posted notice (RCW 59.18.060(16)).

• If the person named does not live in Washington, also name an agent living in the county who can receive notices and legal papers; if you name none, the person who collects rent is the agent (RCW 59.18.060(16)).
• An owner living outside the state who violates the chapter can be sued in Washington courts and served out of state (RCW 59.18.060(16)).
• A tenant's repair notice may go to the person designated as landlord or to whoever collects the rent (RCW 59.18.070).

For leases entered into after December 31, 2026, disclose to tenants that the property may be in a special flood hazard area or an area of potential flooding, that your insurance does not cover the tenant's belongings and the tenant should consider renter's and flood insurance, and that the county government has information about hazards, including flood risk, for the property (RCW 59.18.060(13)).

• The duty applies by the lease's date, so a lease signed on or before December 31, 2026 does not need it (RCW 59.18.060(13)(b)).

Every rental unit occupied by someone other than the owner must have smoke detection devices installed, and installing them is the owner's job. Before a vacant unit is reoccupied, make sure they work. Give each new tenant, when the lease is signed, a written notice signed by both of you that the unit has a smoke detection device, that the tenant must maintain it, and the penalties for not doing so (RCW 43.44.110; RCW 59.18.060(12)).

• The tenant maintains the device as the manufacturer specifies, including replacing batteries (RCW 43.44.110(3); RCW 59.18.130(7)).
• Except for a single-family home, the notice must also say whether the alarm is hard-wired or battery operated, whether the building has a fire sprinkler system, a fire alarm system and a smoking policy (and what it is), and whether it has emergency notification, relocation and evacuation plans, with copies of any plans (RCW 59.18.060(12)(a)).
• In a multifamily building the information may be given as a checklist, which must include a diagram of the emergency evacuation routes (RCW 59.18.060(12)(b)).
• An owner or tenant who fails to comply may be fined up to $200 (RCW 43.44.110(5)(a)).

Provide reasonably adequate locks, furnish keys to the tenant, and keep any master or duplicate keys safe with reasonable care. Chapter 59.18 sets no period for rekeying between tenants (RCW 59.18.060(6), (7)).

• A tenant with a court order giving possession to the exclusion of a cotenant may have a lock replaced or rekeyed at the tenant's expense; if given the order, you must comply and may not give the excluded person a key (RCW 59.18.585).
• A tenant who is a victim of sexual assault, stalking or unlawful harassment by the landlord may change or add locks at the tenant's expense, and must send written notice and the order or report within seven days (RCW 59.18.575(4)).
• A tenant who replaces a lock through repair and deduct must promptly give you a key (RCW 59.18.100(1)).
• From January 1, 2027, a building with a smart access system must offer a tenant who asks a key that does not use biometrics or a phone app, such as a fob, card, physical key or keypad code (RCW 59.18.750).
• A tenant using the landlord-perpetrator lock route cannot change common-area locks and must make new keys available to other household members. A tenant electing to remain supplies the owner or designated agent a key when the identified perpetrator is no longer the landlord's employee or agent and no longer lives at the property. A qualifying protective order against the owner or employee/agent delays that key duty until the order expires or the tenant leaves. On leaving, return all keys by mail or third-party personal delivery (RCW 59.18.575(4)(b), (e)-(f)).
• After the special lock-change notice, emergency entry requires the statutory safeguards: accompaniment by a law-enforcement or fire official acting in an official capacity, or, when immediate entry is reasonably necessary and the tenant is absent, notifying emergency services before using necessary force. Other entry must comply with section 59.18.150 and specify the date, time and purpose in writing, with tenant access arrangements. Changing locks alone does not end rent liability; the agreement must terminate and the tenant must vacate (RCW 59.18.575(4)(c)-(d)).

Washington sets no statewide cap on the amount of a security deposit. It controls how a deposit is taken instead: the lease must be in writing and say when the deposit may be kept, a signed move-in checklist must come first, and a tenant can ask to pay it in installments (RCW 59.18.260; RCW 59.18.610).

• On a tenant's written request, a landlord must let the tenant pay deposits, nonrefundable fees and last month's rent in installments: three equal monthly payments for a term of three months or more, two otherwise. This is not required when deposits and nonrefundable fees total no more than 25 percent of the first full month's rent and last month's rent is not due at the start (RCW 59.18.610(1), (2)).
• No fee or interest may be charged for paying in installments, the schedule must be in writing and signed by both, and refusing a written request costs one month's rent plus the tenant's attorneys' fees (RCW 59.18.610(3), (5)).
• A fee or deposit to hold a unit after it is offered may not be more than 25 percent of the first month's rent, needs a receipt and a written statement of when it may be kept, and must be credited to the first month's rent or the deposit if the tenant moves in (RCW 59.18.253(2) to (4)).
• Money that is nonrefundable may never be called a deposit. A nonrefundable fee needs a written lease that says clearly it is nonrefundable; otherwise it is treated as a refundable deposit (RCW 59.18.285).
• A landlord may offer a recurring fee in lieu of a deposit only as an option the tenant is free to refuse, with the statutory disclosure form, a signed move-in checklist, and insurance bought with the fee (RCW 59.18.670(1), (2)).
• Seattle adds a combined limit: the security deposit and nonrefundable move-in fees together may not exceed the first full month's rent, prorated monthly when rent is not paid monthly. Section 7.24.035 does not apply to a tenant renting a housing unit in a single-family residence that is the owner's principal residence. Nonrefundable move-in fees normally have a separate 10% limit, with a limited exception for screening-report costs. These city rules do not set a higher deposit limit for furnished units (Seattle Municipal Code 7.24.035).
• For Seattle deposits and move-in fees, the tenant may elect six equal monthly installments for a term of six months or longer, up to four equal installments for a term between 30 days and six months, or two for month-to-month. The city excludes screening reimbursements paid before the tenancy from those schedules and has an exception when the combined deposit and fees are no more than 25% of the first month's rent and last month's rent is not required at the start. No installment fee or interest is allowed; an agreed alternative schedule belongs in the lease. The owner-residence exception in section 7.24.035(H) also applies (Seattle Municipal Code 7.24.035).
• Seattle limits the total pet damage deposit to 25% of the first full month's rent, prorated monthly if needed. No pet deposit may be required for an assistance animal, though actual animal damage may still be claimed. State the pet deposit in the lease or a later addendum; the tenant may choose three equal monthly installments starting when the pet moves in, or an agreed alternative. Use this deposit only for pet-caused damage for which the tenant is responsible. The city prohibits other fees for keeping a pet (Seattle Municipal Code 7.24.038).

Promptly put every security deposit in a trust account kept for tenants' deposits, at a financial institution or licensed escrow agent located in Washington. Give the tenant a written receipt and written notice of the name, address and location of the depository, and of any later change. Unless you agree otherwise in writing, you keep the interest (RCW 59.18.270).

• When the landlord changes during a tenancy, the deposits move at the same time to an equivalent trust account of the new landlord, who must promptly tell the tenant where they now are (RCW 59.18.270).
• If a foreclosed owner neither refunds the deposit right after the sale nor transfers it to the successor, the owner is liable for up to twice the deposit (RCW 59.18.270).
• The tenant's claim to the deposit comes before any creditor of the landlord, including a bankruptcy trustee, even if the money was mixed with other funds (RCW 59.18.270).

You may not collect any deposit unless the lease is in writing and, at the start of the tenancy, you give the tenant a written checklist or statement that specifically describes the condition and cleanliness of, and any existing damage to, the unit, fixtures, equipment, appliances and furnishings, including walls, paint and wallpaper, carpets and flooring, furniture and appliances. Both of you sign and date it, and the tenant gets a copy (RCW 59.18.260).

• The tenant may ask for one free replacement copy of the checklist (RCW 59.18.260(3)).
• A landlord who collects a deposit without the checklist is liable to the tenant for the amount of the deposit, and the winner of that suit recovers court costs and attorneys' fees (RCW 59.18.260(5)).
• At move-out you cannot deduct for fixtures, equipment, appliances or furnishings whose condition the checklist did not reasonably document (RCW 59.18.280(1)(c)(iii)).
• A landlord who accepts a fee in lieu of a deposit must still provide the checklist (RCW 59.18.670(1)(e)).

Before obtaining any information about an applicant, tell the applicant in writing, or by posting, what types of information you will use, what criteria may lead to denial, the consumer reporting agency's name and address if you use a consumer report along with the applicant's rights to a free copy and to dispute it, and whether you accept a comprehensive reusable tenant screening report. You may charge for a screening report only if you gave that notice (RCW 59.18.257; RCW 59.18.253).

• If you screen applicants yourself, you may charge your actual costs, but no more than the customary costs of a screening service in the area (RCW 59.18.257(1)(b)(ii)).
• If you accept a reusable screening report, you may still run your own screening as long as the applicant is not charged for it. A landlord with a website advertising the unit must say on the property's home page whether it accepts a reusable report (RCW 59.18.257(1)(a)(iv), (2)).
• If you deny an application or approve it with conditions, give a written adverse action notice stating the reasons, substantially in the statutory form (RCW 59.18.257(1)(c)).
• Failing to give the notice before screening can cost up to $100 plus court costs and attorneys' fees (RCW 59.18.257(3)).
• You may not charge a fee to be placed on a waiting list, and a holding fee after the unit is offered may not exceed 25 percent of the first month's rent; the cost of screening is not part of a holding fee (RCW 59.18.253(1), (3), (4)(b)).
• Keep screening procedure separate from the rules governing which records you may use. RCW 59.18.257 sets the advance notice, screening-cost and written adverse-action requirements; it does not establish a statewide blanket criminal-history rejection rule. A disclosed criterion and a completed notice do not by themselves make a decision lawful. Check the applicable civil rights, consumer reporting and local requirements before requesting or using records (RCW 59.18.257).
• A written court order can limit dissemination of an eviction action when the case lacked a sufficient factual or legal basis, the tenancy was reinstated, or other good cause exists. For the person covered by that order, a tenant screening service must omit the action from its report and cannot use it in a score or recommendation. This protection depends on the order; this section does not impose a general seven-year limit on all eviction records (RCW 59.18.367).See Eviction process on the Washington page
• Washington separately limits what consumer reporting agencies may include in reports. Medical debt is prohibited. Other record categories have different age rules: bankruptcy has a ten-year limit, while suits and judgments use seven years or the applicable limitations period, whichever is longer. Other listed adverse records generally have seven-year rules, with specified exceptions for certain credit, insurance and employment reports. Do not turn these reporting limits into a blanket rule allowing or forbidding every landlord screening decision (RCW 19.182.040).