Landlord & Tenant Issues

Landlords

Need help drafting or revising your rental agreements or notices? Are you clear about the timelines required by Washington’s Residential Landlord Tenant Act (RLTA)? Do you need help with an eviction? Our firm can provide full services or just legal advice on particular issues.

The Washington legislature recently passed changes to the RLTA, and other changes took place in the past couple years. If your rental agreements and other forms have not been updated recently, you may be using forms that are out of compliance with Washington law. The eviction process in particular has been radically changed, both in the notices required and the options available to the court to allow the tenant to stay at the property. Do not use evictions forms created prior to June 2019 without obtaining legal advice.

Tenants

"Can my landlord do that?" This is a question we often hear. Corporate landlords typically have leases that exceed 30 pages. Most tenants become weary while trying to review all the fine print and end up signing without reading the full document, so they do not understand all of the obligations or the fees they might be charged. Other times, tenants are given verbal promises by a property manager that contradict a clause in the lease. Once tenants have signed, however, negotiating with a corporate landlord is extremely difficult and modifications to the lease are rarely granted.

Although it may seem like an impossible task, it is critical that you review all pages of your lease (and attachments) before you sign, or digitally apply your signature. If you do not understand something, get clarification before you sign. Ask these important questions via email or in a format where you can save a copy of both the question and the response. Be sure that any promises made by a property manager are included in the lease. Ask the property manager to show you the section where such promises are included.