Washington Rent Increase Rules for Landlords

Washington limits how much you can raise rent. Since May 7, 2025, state law caps an increase in any 12-month period at 7% plus inflation or 10%, whichever is less, which works out to 9.683% for 2026 and 10% for 2027. Unless an exemption applies, you cannot raise rent in the first 12 months of a tenancy; you must still give at least 90 days' written notice. Seattle and Tacoma require 180 days' notice and can make you fund the tenant's move after a large increase.

How much can you raise rent in Washington?

The cap comes from House Bill 1217, codified at RCW 59.18.700. In any 12-month period, rent cannot go up by more than 7% plus the Consumer Price Index (CPI), or 10%, whichever is lower. The CPI figure is the June-to-June change in the Bureau of Labor Statistics index for the Seattle area.

You do not calculate the cap yourself. Each year the Department of Commerce publishes the maximum for the following calendar year, shortly after the June CPI data comes out in July.

Worked example: a tenant pays $2,000 a month and the 12-month period ends in 2026. The most you can charge is $2,000 x 1.09683 = $2,193.66, an increase of $193.66. For an increase in 2027, the limit is $2,000 x 1.10 = $2,200.

The limit counts every increase within a 12-month period together. Two 5% increases six months apart total more than 10% and break the cap.

"Rent" under Washington's landlord-tenant law means the recurring charges in the rental agreement, which can include utilities. Late fees, damage charges, and deposits are not rent.

When can you raise rent?

• Not in the first 12 months, unless exempt. RCW 59.18.700 applies this rule to any type of tenancy, including a month-to-month tenancy.
• Not during a fixed-term lease. Under RCW 59.18.140, an increase cannot take effect before the current rental term ends. Raise rent at renewal or, for a month-to-month tenant, at the start of a rental period.
• At least 90 days' written notice. The 90-day notice applies to every increase, of any size. If the tenant's rent is based on income, as in many subsidized programs, the notice period is 30 days.
• Month-to-month pricing. Rent for a month-to-month tenancy cannot be more than 5% higher than the rent for the same unit on a longer lease, and that difference still has to fit within the cap.

Once a tenant moves out and the tenancy ends, you can set any rent for the next tenant. For a nonexempt unit, the cap then applies to that new tenancy after its first 12 months.

State law requires ordinary residential rent-increase notices to substantially follow the "Rent and Fee Increase Notice to Tenants" form posted on Commerce's HB 1217 resource page. Complete all required fields, including the percentage and dollar increase, new total rent and recurring fees, effective date, and supporting facts for any claimed exemption.

Which Washington rentals are exempt from the cap?

RCW 59.18.710 exempts these units from the percentage limit and the first-year prohibition:

1. New construction. The unit's first certificate of occupancy was issued 12 years or less before the date of the rent increase notice.
2. Public and nonprofit affordable housing. Units owned by a public housing authority, a public development authority, or a nonprofit whose rents are already regulated by other law or an affordable housing program, plus certain low-income housing tax credit properties with a state regulatory agreement.
3. Owner-occupied small properties. A duplex, triplex, or fourplex where you lived in one unit as your principal residence when the tenancy began and still do. Also a single-family home you live in where you rent no more than two units or bedrooms, including an accessory dwelling unit, and a unit where the tenant shares a kitchen or bathroom with you.

The owner-occupied exemptions in item 3 do not apply if the owner is a corporation, a real estate investment trust, or an LLC with at least one corporate member. An LLC owned only by individuals can still qualify.

An exemption removes both the cap and the first-year prohibition but not the notice rules. You still need 90 days' notice, and if you rely on an exemption you must state the facts supporting it in the written notice.

What happens if an increase breaks the rules?

RCW 59.18.700 gives the tenant several options when an increase exceeds the cap without a valid exemption:

• The tenant must give you a written demand to reduce the increase to a lawful amount, giving you an opportunity to cure the violation.
• The tenant can end the tenancy before the increase takes effect by giving written notice at least 20 days before the termination date. They owe rent only through the end of the month they move out, with no fees for leaving early.
• The tenant or the Attorney General can sue. A court can award the excess rent paid, damages of up to three months of the unlawful charges, and attorney fees. The Attorney General can also seek civil penalties of up to $7,500 per violation.

You also cannot report a tenant to a tenant screening service for refusing to pay the unlawful part of an increase.

Separately, RCW 59.18.250 presumes an increase is retaliatory if you raise rent within 90 days after the tenant makes a good-faith complaint, such as reporting a code violation. The presumption does not arise if your notice states reasonable grounds for the increase. If repairs are behind, read Washington maintenance and repair obligations before sending a notice.

Seattle and Tacoma add longer notice and relocation payments

Cities can add their own requirements on top of the state cap. Check your city code before sending a notice.

Seattle. Notices that lack the required city language are unenforceable, and you would have to reissue the notice and restart the 180 days. You cannot raise housing costs on a unit that fails Seattle's rental inspection standards until it is fixed. For an increase of 10% or more, you must attach a notice about Economic Displacement Relocation Assistance. Households at or below 80% of area median income ($81,700 for one person in 2026) planning to move out must give you written notice of their move-out date before the increase takes effect and apply no later than 60 days after its effective date. If approved, the city advances three times the monthly housing cost, and you must reimburse the city.

Tacoma. Before issuing a notice, you must meet the city's annual business-license requirements, pay applicable license fees, register each unit, and certify that each unit meets state housing requirements and has no conditions that endanger tenants' health or safety. The notice must state the percentage, the new rent, the effective date, and how the relocation payment is calculated. Include the city's resource summary with the notice. A tenant who chooses to move after a 5% or larger increase can request assistance, and you must pay within 30 days. The payment does not apply when you live on a site of four or fewer units, or when the tenant has lived in the unit less than six months. A tenant who takes the payment and then stays must repay it within 10 days.

How to raise rent in Washington, step by step

1. Confirm the tenancy is at least 12 months old unless exempt, and that the current lease term will have ended by the effective date.
2. Check whether the unit is exempt under RCW 59.18.710, and write down the facts if you rely on an exemption.
3. Add up every increase in the past 12 months and compare the total to the Commerce figure (9.683% for 2026, 10% for 2027).
4. Check your city's rules for longer notice or relocation payments. In Tacoma, complete the licensing, fee, registration, and certification requirements above before issuing notice.
5. Serve the required notice form at least 90 days ahead (180 days in Seattle or Tacoma), with all required increase details and exemption information. In Tacoma, attach the city's resource summary. Keep proof of service.

For pricing the increase within the cap, see how to set the rent price and how to increase the rent. If a tenant stops paying after an increase, the Washington eviction process explains the 14-day pay-or-vacate notice and court steps.