HOUSE BILL REPORT

SHB 2041

As Amended by the Senate

BYHouse Committee on Housing (originally sponsored by Representatives Nutley, Winsley, Todd, Rector, Ballard, Leonard, Anderson, Padden, D. Sommers and McLean)

Changing landlord-tenant law.

House Committe on Housing

Majority Report:  The substitute bill be substituted therefor and the substitute bill do pass.  (8)

      Signed by Representatives Nutley, Chair; Leonard, Vice Chair; Winsley, Ranking Republican Member; Anderson, Ballard, Inslee, Padden and Todd.

House Staff:Charlie Gavigan (786-7340)

AS PASSED HOUSE MARCH 15, 1989

BACKGROUND:

Current statutes dealing with residential landlord-tenant laws were originally passed in Washington State in 1973 and many have been amended since then. Prior to that, landlord-tenant law was based on common or court-made law and on unlawful detainer statutes that generally applied to all types of landlord- tenant situations (including commercial).

There are two important concepts in landlord-tenant law.  The first is that the landlord conveys a possessory interest in land to the tenant in return for the payment of rent.  This concept dates back to agrarian England, when the land was used for crops and the landlord provided no services.  The tenant built his own shelter, and found his own water and wood for heat.  If the tenant did not pay the rent timely, the landlord would evict the tenant, using force if necessary.  Unlawful detainer statutes now prohibit a landlord from physically evicting a tenant, providing instead for a court action and final eviction by the sheriff.  The sheriff normally requires the landlord to obtain a bond to protect the sheriff from any liability that may arise from enforcing the eviction order (writ of restitution).

The second important concept is that, since today most renters are more concerned with the building as a place to live than the land as a place to grow crops, the landlord now provides basic services to which the landlord and tenant contract for in the rental agreement.

Landlord-tenant law generally treats these two concepts separately, so that in order to maintain possession of the unit the tenant must pay the rent due even though the landlord may not be providing promised services.

The Residential Landlord-Tenant Act governs residential rental situations, and overrides common law and the rental agreement.  The act lists several general provisions, defines duties of the landlord and the tenant, provides remedies for the landlord and the tenant and makes mediation and arbitration available.

Important general provisions are the duty of good faith imposed on both the landlord and the tenant, and the requirement that rental agreements for more than one year or that contain a deposit must be in writing.

Generally a landlord must:  (1)  Keep the premises habitable by maintaining it to code, keeping it in good repair, and keeping utilities in good working condition; (2) give the tenant two days notice before entering the unit to inspect it or show it for sale; (3) establish a trust account for the tenant's security deposit; and (4) take no retaliatory action against the tenant when the tenant exercises his or her legal rights.

The landlord must begin making repairs within a specified period of time after receiving written notice from the tenant describing a needed repair.  If the defective condition is imminently hazardous to life or deprives the tenant of water or heat, the landlord must take action within 24 hours.  If the defective condition deprives the tenant of hot water or electricity, the landlord must take action within 48 hours.  In all other cases, the landlord must take action within seven or 30 days, depending on whether the condition relates to keeping the premises fit for human habitation.  Where circumstances beyond the landlord's control prevent the landlord from complying with the time limitations, including the lack of available financing, the landlord must remedy the condition as soon as possible.

Where the landlord has failed to make a repair, after notice by the tenant and the expiration of the statutory period for the landlord to make the repair, the tenant can either: (a) do the repair and deduct the cost from the rent due (this is limited to one half month's rent or $75, whichever is less, in a 12 month period); (b) hire, after obtaining two bids, a contractor to do the repair and deduct the cost from the rent due (this is limited to one month's rent in a 12 month period); or (c) go to court or arbitration and have determined the decreased value of the rental due to the needed repair, which the tenant then pays from the time the tenant gave notice of the needed repair to the landlord until the landlord makes the repair (the court or arbitrator can also authorize the tenant to make the repair, limited to one month's rent in a calendar year). When the landlord has not returned the security deposit to the tenant within 14 days from the end of the tenancy or sent the tenant an explanation of why the full deposit is not being returned, the landlord is liable for the full deposit.  If not returning the deposit is intentional, the landlord is liable for up to two times the amount of the deposit.

Generally a tenant must: (1) pay the rent due in a timely manner; (2) keep the premises clean and sanitary; (3) allow the landlord reasonable access to the premises after proper notice is given by the landlord; (4) return the unit in the same condition as it was at the beginning of the tenancy, except for ordinary wear and tear, and (5) avoid committing or permitting waste or a nuisance.

If a tenant fails to perform a duty, a landlord's primary remedies under the act are:  (1) to keep the security deposit; (2) to obtain a court order to allow access to the unit where the tenant has unreasonably denied access; and (3) to evict the tenant through an unlawful detainer action.

When a tenant indicates by words or actions that the tenant has abandoned the premises and the tenancy, the landlord may enter the premises and store any property the tenant left on the premises.  The landlord must mail a notice to the tenant at the last known address of the tenant indicating where the property is stored.  After 60 days, the landlord can sell the property and apply the proceeds to the amount due the landlord by the tenant.  If the value of the property is less than $50, the landlord can sell the property after seven days, except for personal papers and keepsakes.

The parties can submit disputes to mediation or arbitration, although both parties must agree to the mediation or arbitration.

The normal filing fee for a civil action in superior court, including an unlawful detainer action, is $78.  The legislature has reduced this filing fee to $20 for petitions for an order for protection from domestic violence, and for actions to strike discriminatory provisions from real property instruments.

SUMMARY:

The filing fee for an unlawful detainer action is reduced to $20 when the tenant does not respond to the filed complaint.  The $20 fee would not apply to any order to show cause or any other order except a default order or default judgment.  If the tenant responds to the filed complaint, the landlord must pay the full $78 filing fee.

The sheriff is given immunity from civil liability for serving or enforcing writs of restitution (to evict tenants), except for acting with gross negligence. Therefore the sheriff cannot require the landlord to post a bond to protect the sheriff from civil liability for serving or enforcing the writ of restitution.

Changes are made to residential landlord-tenant law.  Several are technical or provide clarification; others are substantive changes.

The time periods for the landlord to make repairs after notice by the tenant are revised.  The landlord must take action within 24 hours if the defective condition deprives the tenant of hot or cold water, heat, or electricity.  The landlord must take action within 72 hours if the defective condition deprives the tenant of the use of a refrigerator, range and oven, or major plumbing fixture.  The landlord must take action within 10 days in all other cases.  The exception for circumstances beyond the landlord's control is still applicable.

The tenant's self-help repair remedies are revised.  When the landlord does not begin the repair within the required time period, the tenant may provide the landlord with a good faith estimate of the cost of the repair and then contract with a licensed or registered person, or a responsible person if a license or registration is not required to to make the repair.  This remedy is limited to one month's rent per repair and two month's rent per year.  If the cost of the repair is less than one half month's rent, the tenant can make the repair after having given notice and the time period for the landlord to make the repair has expired; no estimate is necessary in this case, although it is limited to one half month's rent per repair and to one month's rent per year.

A tenant cannot unreasonably withhold consent to a landlord to enter the premise to show the unit for a potential sale or rental if the landlord has given one day's notice.  The landlord cannot unreasonably interfere with the tenant's enjoyment of the unit by excessively exhibiting the unit.  A landlord who violates a tenant's right to privacy, or a tenant who violates a landlord's right to access, after one notice alleging a violation, is liable for up to $100 for each subsequent violation.

When the tenant abandons the tenancy and leaves behind personal property that the landlord stores, the landlord must make reasonable efforts to notify the tenant, at any address known to the landlord, that a sale or disposition of the tenant's property will be made after 45 days from the date notice is given.  The landlord can sell or dispose of the property, except for personal papers or keepsakes, after seven days from the date notice was given if the total value of the property is $50 or less.

A new remedy is provided to the tenant when the landlord does not make needed repairs and the repair and deduct remedies are not sufficient to correct the problem.  A rent escrow process is established.  It applies to conditions that are substandard and dangerous to the health and safety of the tenant.  In order to use this remedy, the tenant must give the landlord written notice regarding the defective condition.  If the landlord does not repair the defective condition within the required time period, the tenant can request that the local government provide for an inspection to certify whether the defective condition exists and is a substantial hazard to the health and safety of the tenant.  The local government can only inspect the condition specified by the tenant, and is immune from liability for ignoring any other defects.

If the local government certifies that the defective condition exists and is a substantial hazard to the health and safety of the tenant, the tenant can deposit rent into an escrow account as the rent is due. The tenant must notify the landlord that the rent is being deposited in an escrow account and provide the name and location of the escrow account.

The landlord can have the funds released by the escrow company by providing a certification from the local government that the repairs that resulted in the rent escrow have been completed.  In addition, the landlord and the tenant can initiate a court action under certain conditions to resolve the dispute and cause the release of the funds in escrow.  The landlord can also request a court to have funds released from the escrow account to pay the debt service on the premises or to make the needed repairs to the premises.

Other clarifications or changes include: (1) a 30 day notice is necessary for a rent increase at the end of a tenancy that is being renewed, or the parties can mutually agree to an earlier date; (2) the security deposit or explanation must be mailed by the landlord within 14 days, the tenant does not have to receive the deposit or the explanation within 14; (3) a utility company cannot discontinue service to a tenant because the utility bill was not paid if it is the landlord's responsibility to pay the utility bill; and (4) the landlord cannot rent a condemned unit to a new tenant.

An alternative means of service is provided when the landlord cannot personally serve the tenant after making reasonable efforts to do so.  Also, the summons for residential unlawful detainer actions is set out in statute.

EFFECT OF SENATE AMENDMENTS:  The Senate amendments:  (1) change the reduced filing fee for an uncontested unlawful detainer action from $20 to $30; (2) remove the provisions that prohibit utility companies from stopping service for non-payment when the tenant is not obligated to pay the utility company; (3) change the effective date to August 1, 1989, and (4) make two technical changes.

The Senate amendments change the reduced filing fee for an uncontested, unlawful detainer from $20.00 in the substitute bill to $30.00.

Fiscal Note:      Requested February 20, 1989.

House Committee ‑ Testified For:    Joseph Puckett, Independent Real Estate Managers; John Magnuson Independent Real Estate Managers; Rick Slunaker, Yakima Valley Rental Association; Fred Brune, Washington Mobile Park Owners Association; David Girard, Evergreen Legal Services; Bill Butler, The Tenants Union; Daria DeCooman, The Tenants Union.

House Committee - Testified Against:      Jim Goche, Washington Association of County Officials.

House Committee - Testimony For:    This is an agreed-to bill by representatives of landlords, tenants, realtors and others to address deficiencies in the present landlord-tenant act.  The bill clarifies several confusing and ambiguous provisions in present law.  The bill addresses landlords' concerns regarding: (1) access to the unit; (2) decreasing the cost of unlawful detainer actions in certain cases; (3) storing and disposing of abandoned property; (4) mailing the security deposit or explanation; and (5) the sheriff's bond requirement. The bill addresses tenants' concerns regarding: (1) problems with the repair-and-deduct remedy, particularly timeframes for the landlord making repairs and the two bids requirement; (2) penalties for interfering with the tenant's right to privacy; (3) major unrepaired defects that endanger the health and safety of the tenant and can't be adequately corrected by the repair and deduct remedy; and (4) cut-off of utility services when the landlord does not pay the utility bill.  Both sides received benefits and both sides gave up things to reach a balanced compromise.

House Committee - Testimony Against:      The section of the bill that provides for a $20 filing fee for unlawful detainer actions when the tenant does not respond to the filed complaint will reduce fees available to the court to process the file.  Part of the court fee also goes for public safety programs.

VOTE ON FINAL PASSAGE:

      Yeas 98