Washington Landlord Tenant Law

Archive for the ‘Washington Landlord Tenant Law’ Category

Abandonment must be clear and unequivocal.[1] The tenant need not expressly state an intention to abandon.  Such an intention may be implied by law.[2] “This inference may be drawn from anything which amounts to an agreement on the part of the tenant to abandon.”[3] Read the rest of this entry »

In a recent unpublished opinion Division III of the Washington Court of Appeals held that despite the acceptance of rent the occupants of certain rental property were merely tenants at sufferance and subject to eviction via an unlawful detainer action.[1] Read the rest of this entry »

A tenant at will is not defined by statute in Washington.  A tenancy at will is of indefinite duration, terminable at the will of either party without advance notice, and does not survive the death of either party.

Unlawful detainer was not a cause of action at common law (i.e. before such a statute was passed).  Therefore, in an unlawful detainer eviction action courts have jurisdiction to hear only matters concerning tenancies that are defined by statute.[1]

In Washington a tenant whose compensation includes living accommodations furnished by the employer is a tenant at will.[2]

Because a tenancy at will is not governed by the unlawful detainer statute, to evict a tenant at will the landowner must bring an ejectment action.[3] The upshot is that, rather than being easier, in Washington it is slower, more expensive, and more difficult to evict a tenant at will than a tenant in a landlord and tenant relationship.

[2] Id.

[3] Turner v. White.