(NOTE: This is the second in a three-part series of blog posts of Washington Landlord-Tenant laws that take effect June 11, 2020.)
Effective June 11, 2020, the Washington State Legislature will add or amend sections to RCW 59.18 to give tenants a statutory grace period to pay rent before authorizing late fees.
Basically, the tenant will not be liable to the landlord for any late fees as long as the rent is paid within five calendar days after it is due. For example, if the rent is normally due by the 1st of the month, the tenant will have until the end of day on the 6th of that month to pay rent in full to avoid any late fees.
The landlord must make accommodations to move the rent due date if the tenant proposes this in writing and the tenant can show he or she is on governmental assistance as a primary source of income. The new due date should be no more than five days after the original due date, but the tenant likely can still make a reasonable accommodation under local, state, or federal law.
For example, if the tenant's state assistance - his primary source of income - hits the bank account on the 5th of the month instead, the tenant can send written request to the landlord to move the rent due date to the 5th or 6th of the month, preferably with supporting documentation. The landlord must then honor that request, and that should be in writing.
RC 59.18.230 will be amended to ensure that any express agreement that is contrary to the above language will be unenforceable.
Finally, this change does not prevent the landlord from serving a 14-day notice to pay rent or vacate for back rent owed. RCW 59.18.030(28) states late fees are generally NOT considered "rent" in usual cases (unless the agreement so states or if paid under an installment plan). Thus, a landlord in a non-COVID-19 world could still serve the 14-day rent notice the day after the rent is due, then serve a 10-day notice for the late fees after the requisite waiting period ends.
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The main purpose here is to give tenants possible leeway if they cannot pay on the stated date, or to avoid possibly petty late fees if the money gets to the landlord a couple days late.
The legislature likely settled on five days because sometimes, in direct deposit, it may take up to three business days for money to officially hit the account, and weekends can add two extra calendar days (five total).
As always, situations will differ based on the facts of the case and the arguments made to a judge.
