Can my daughter be served a three day eviction notice if she is behind on the rent?
Full Question:
What is the eviction law in Kitsap County, Washington State? My daughter was just served with a 3 day pay or eviction notice today. She says that she has been given no earlier notices. Is this legal? She asked the off site manager to let her know if they did not receive the rent by the 15th of the month and now they are stating that she didn't pay last month or this month and now this. Rent is due on the 1st and late on the 5th. She hadn't paid this month yet....the 5th was Saturday. She was unaware that the check last month was not cashed. She is a single mother with 20 month old daughter.
05/07/2007 |
Category: Landlord Tenant |
State: Washington |
#4102
Answer:
Your daughter should carefully read her lease agreement to determine her rights and obligations regarding rent and her landlord's rights and obligations regarding termination and eviction.
The applicable Washington statutes are as follows:
RCW 59.18.063 Landlord — Provide written receipt upon request.
A landlord shall provide, upon the request of a tenant, a written receipt
for any payments made by the tenant.
RCW 59.18.080 Payment of rent condition to exercising remedies —
Exceptions.
The tenant shall be current in the payment of rent including all
utilities which the tenant has agreed in the rental agreement to pay before
exercising any of the remedies accorded him under the provisions of this
chapter: PROVIDED, That this section shall not be construed as limiting the
tenant's civil remedies for negligent or intentional damages: PROVIDED
FURTHER, That this section shall not be construed as limiting the tenant's
right in an unlawful detainer proceeding to raise the defense that there is
no rent due and owing.
RCW 59.18.130 Duties of tenant.
Each tenant shall pay the rental amount at such times and in such amounts
as provided for in the rental agreement or as otherwise provided by law and
comply with all obligations imposed upon tenants by applicable provisions
of all municipal, county, and state codes, statutes, ordinances, and
regulations, and in addition shall:
(1) Keep that part of the premises which he or she occupies and uses as
clean and sanitary as the conditions of the premises permit;
(2) Properly dispose from his or her dwelling unit all rubbish, garbage,
and other organic or flammable waste, in a clean and sanitary manner at
reasonable and regular intervals, and assume all costs of extermination and
fumigation for infestation caused by the tenant;
(3) Properly use and operate all electrical, gas, heating, plumbing and
other fixtures and appliances supplied by the landlord;
(4) Not intentionally or negligently destroy, deface, damage, impair, or
remove any part of the structure or dwelling, with the appurtenances
thereto, including the facilities, equipment, furniture, furnishings, and
appliances, or permit any member of his or her family, invitee, licensee,
or any person acting under his or her control to do so. Violations may be
prosecuted under chapter 9A.48 RCW if the destruction is intentional and
malicious;
(5) Not permit a nuisance or common waste;
(6) Not engage in drug-related activity at the rental premises, or allow
a subtenant, sublessee, resident, or anyone else to engage in drug-related
activity at the rental premises with the knowledge or consent of the
tenant. "Drug-related activity" means that activity which constitutes a
violation of chapter 69.41, 69.50, or 69.52 RCW;
(7) Maintain the smoke detection device in accordance with the
manufacturer's recommendations, including the replacement of batteries
where required for the proper operation of the smoke detection device, as
required in RCW 48.48.140(3);[fn*]
(8) Not engage in any activity at the rental premises that is:
(a) Imminently hazardous to the physical safety of other persons on the
premises; and
(b)(i) Entails physical assaults upon another person which result in an
arrest; or
(ii) Entails the unlawful use of a firearm or other deadly weapon as
defined in RCW 9A.04.110 which results in an arrest, including threatening
another tenant or the landlord with a firearm or other deadly weapon under
RCW 59.18.352. Nothing in this subsection (8) shall authorize the
termination of tenancy and eviction of the victim of a physical assault or
the victim of the use or threatened use of a firearm or other deadly
weapon;
(9) Not engage in any gang-related activity at the premises, as defined
in RCW 59.18.030, or allow another to engage in such activity at the
premises, that renders people in at least two or more dwelling units or
residences insecure in life or the use of property or that injures or
endangers the safety or health of people in at least two or more dwelling
units or residences. In determining whether a tenant is engaged in
gang-related activity, a court should consider the totality of the
circumstances, including factors such as whether there have been a
significant number of complaints to the landlord about the tenant's
activities at the property, damages done by the tenant to the property,
including the property of other tenants or neighbors, harassment or threats
made by the tenant to other tenants or neighbors that have been reported to
law enforcement agencies, any police incident reports involving the tenant,
and the tenant's criminal history; and
(10) Upon termination and vacation, restore the premises to their initial
condition except for reasonable wear and tear or conditions caused by
failure of the landlord to comply with his or her obligations under this
chapter: PROVIDED, That the tenant shall not be charged for normal cleaning
if he or she has paid a nonrefundable cleaning fee.
[fn*] RCW 48.48.140 was recodified as RCW 43.44.110 pursuant to 2006 c
25 § 13.
RCW 59.18.140 Reasonable obligations or restrictions — Tenant's duty to
conform.
The tenant shall conform to all reasonable obligations or restrictions,
whether denominated by the landlord as rules, rental agreement, rent, or
otherwise, concerning the use, occupation, and maintenance of his dwelling
unit, appurtenances thereto, and the property of which the dwelling unit is
a part if such obligations and restrictions are not in violation of any of
the terms of this chapter and are not otherwise contrary to law, and if
such obligations and restrictions are brought to the attention of the
tenant at the time of his initial occupancy of the dwelling unit and thus
become part of the rental agreement. Except for termination of tenancy,
after thirty days written notice to each affected tenant, a new rule of
tenancy including a change in the amount of rent may become effective upon
completion of the term of the rental agreement or sooner upon mutual
consent.
RCW 59.18.170 Landlord to give notice if tenant fails to carry out duties.
If at any time during the tenancy the tenant fails to carry out the
duties required by RCW 59.18.130 or 59.18.140, the landlord may, in
addition to pursuit of remedies otherwise provided by law, give written
notice to the tenant of said failure, which notice shall specify the nature
of the failure.
RCW 59.18.180 Tenant's failure to comply with statutory duties — Landlord
to give tenant written notice of noncompliance — Landlord's remedies.
(1) If the tenant fails to comply with any portion of RCW 59.18.130 or
59.18.140, and such noncompliance can substantially affect the health and
safety of the tenant or other tenants, or substantially increase the
hazards of fire or accident that can be remedied by repair, replacement of
a damaged item, or cleaning, the tenant shall comply within thirty days
after written notice by the landlord specifying the noncompliance, or, in
the case of emergency as promptly as conditions require. If the tenant
fails to remedy the noncompliance within that period the landlord may enter
the dwelling unit and cause the work to be done and submit an itemized bill
of the actual and reasonable cost of repair, to be payable on the next date
when periodic rent is due, or on terms mutually agreed to by the landlord
and tenant, or immediately if the rental agreement has terminated. Any
substantial noncompliance by the tenant of RCW 59.18.130 or 59.18.140 shall
constitute a ground for commencing an action in unlawful detainer in
accordance with the provisions of chapter 59.12 RCW, and a landlord may
commence such action at any time after written notice pursuant to such
chapter. The tenant shall have a defense to an unlawful detainer action
filed solely on this ground if it is determined at the hearing authorized
under the provisions of chapter 59.12 RCW that the tenant is in substantial
compliance with the provisions of this section, or if the tenant remedies
the noncomplying condition within the thirty day period provided for above
or any shorter period determined at the hearing to have been required
because of an emergency: PROVIDED, That if the defective condition is
remedied after the commencement of an unlawful detainer action, the tenant
may be liable to the landlord for statutory costs and reasonable attorney's
fees.
(2) If drug-related activity is alleged to be a basis for termination of
tenancy under RCW 59.18.130(6), 59.12.030(5), or 59.20.140(5), the
compliance provisions of this section do not apply and the landlord may
proceed directly to an unlawful detainer action.
(3) If activity on the premises that creates an imminent hazard to the
physical safety of other persons on the premises as defined in RCW
59.18.130(8) is alleged to be the basis for termination of the tenancy, and
the tenant is arrested as a result of this activity, then the compliance
provisions of this section do not apply and the landlord may proceed
directly to an unlawful detainer action against the tenant who was arrested
for this activity.
(4) If gang-related activity, as prohibited under RCW 59.18.130(9), is
alleged to be the basis for termination of the tenancy, then the compliance
provisions of this section do not apply and the landlord may proceed
directly to an unlawful detainer action in accordance with chapter 59.12
RCW, and a landlord may commence such an action at any time after written
notice under chapter 59.12 RCW.
(5) A landlord may not be held liable in any cause of action for bringing
an unlawful detainer action against a tenant for drug-related activity, for
creating an imminent hazard to the physical safety of others, or for
engaging in gang-related activity that renders people in at least two or
more dwelling units or residences insecure in life or the use of property
or that injures or endangers the safety or health of people in at least two
or more dwelling units or residences under this section, if the unlawful
detainer action was brought in good faith. Nothing in this section shall
affect a landlord's liability under RCW 59.18.380 to pay all damages
sustained by the tenant should the writ of restitution be wrongfully sued
out.
RCW 59.18.190 Notice to tenant to remedy nonconformance.
Whenever the landlord learns of a breach of RCW 59.18.130 or has accepted
performance by the tenant which is at variance with the terms of the rental
agreement or rules enforceable after the commencement of the tenancy, he
may immediately give notice to the tenant to remedy the nonconformance.
Said notice shall expire after sixty days unless the landlord pursues any
remedy under this chapter.
RCW 59.18.200 Tenancy from month to month or for rental period —
Termination — Armed Forces exception — Exclusion of children or conversion
to condominium — Notice.
(1)(a) When premises are rented for an indefinite time, with monthly or
other periodic rent reserved, such tenancy shall be construed to be a
tenancy from month to month, or from period to period on which rent is
payable, and shall be terminated by written notice of twenty days or more,
preceding the end of any of the months or periods of tenancy, given by
either party to the other.
(b) Any tenant who is a member of the armed forces, including the
national guard and armed forces reserves, or that tenant's spouse or
dependant, may terminate a rental agreement with less than twenty days'
notice if the tenant receives reassignment or deployment orders that do not
allow a twenty-day notice.
(2) Whenever a landlord plans to change any apartment or apartments to a
condominium form of ownership or plans to change to a policy of excluding
children, the landlord shall give a written notice to a tenant at least
ninety days before termination of the tenancy to effectuate such change in
policy. Such ninety-day notice shall be in lieu of the notice required by
subsection (1) of this section. However, if after giving the ninety-day
notice the change in policy is delayed, the notice requirements of
subsection (1) of this section shall apply unless waived by the tenant.
RCW 59.18.310 Default in rent — Abandonment — Liability of tenant —
Landlord's remedies — Sale of tenant's property by landlord.
If the tenant defaults in the payment of rent and reasonably indicates by
words or actions the intention not to resume tenancy, the tenant shall be
liable for the following for such abandonment: PROVIDED, That upon learning
of such abandonment of the premises the landlord shall make a reasonable
effort to mitigate the damages resulting from such abandonment:
(1) When the tenancy is month-to-month, the tenant shall be liable for
the rent for the thirty days following either the date the landlord learns
of the abandonment, or the date the next regular rental payment would have
become due, whichever first occurs.
(2) When the tenancy is for a term greater than month-to-month, the
tenant shall be liable for the lesser of the following:
(a) The entire rent due for the remainder of the term; or
(b) All rent accrued during the period reasonably necessary to rerent the
premises at a fair rental, plus the difference between such fair rental and
the rent agreed to in the prior agreement, plus actual costs incurred by
the landlord in rerenting the premises together with statutory court costs
and reasonable attorney's fees.
In the event of such abandonment of tenancy and an accompanying default
in the payment of rent by the tenant, the landlord may immediately enter
and take possession of any property of the tenant found on the premises and
may store the same in any reasonably secure place. A landlord shall make
reasonable efforts to provide the tenant with a notice containing the name
and address of the landlord and the place where the property is stored and
informing the tenant that a sale or disposition of the property shall take
place pursuant to this section, and the date of the sale or disposal, and
further informing the tenant of the right under RCW 59.18.230 to have the
property returned prior to its sale or disposal. The landlord's efforts at
notice under this subsection shall be satisfied by the mailing by first
class mail, postage prepaid, of such notice to the tenant's last known
address and to any other address provided in writing by the tenant or
actually known to the landlord where the tenant might receive the notice.
The landlord shall return the property to the tenant after the tenant has
paid the actual or reasonable drayage and storage costs whichever is less
if the tenant makes a written request for the return of the property before
the landlord has sold or disposed of the property. After forty-five days
from the date the notice of such sale or disposal is mailed or personally
delivered to the tenant, the landlord may sell or dispose of such property,
including personal papers, family pictures, and keepsakes. The landlord may
apply any income derived therefrom against moneys due the landlord,
including actual or reasonable costs whichever is less of drayage and
storage of the property. If the property has a cumulative value of fifty
dollars or less, the landlord may sell or dispose of the property in the
manner provided in this section, except for personal papers, family
pictures, and keepsakes, after seven days from the date the notice of sale
or disposal is mailed or personally delivered to the tenant: PROVIDED, That
the landlord shall make reasonable efforts, as defined in this section, to
notify the tenant. Any excess income derived from the sale of such property
under this section shall be held by the landlord for the benefit of the
tenant for a period of one year from the date of sale, and if no claim is
made or action commenced by the tenant for the recovery thereof prior to
the expiration of that period of time, the balance shall be the property of
the landlord, including any interest paid on the income.