Legislative Session Information & Resources
What is “Welcome Home”?
You may have seen our recent television ads and wonder, "What is 'Welcome Home' all about?" Welcome Home is a comprehensive plan to provide additional types of housing and ramp up incentives for local jurisdictions to provide more and diverse housing types...such as duplexes, triplexes, and cottage housing. Under Welcome Home, a series of legislative initiatives have been designed to allow more housing for our communities.
2023 WR Legislative Priorities
When a house is sold, sometimes the seller is not yet ready to move out, or the buyer is not able to move in. In this situation, the buyer and seller will agree to a written “leaseback” as part of the sale so that the seller stays in the house after closing for a certain period of time. This is not a typical landlord-tenant type situation, so this bill would clarify that a sale/leaseback is exempt from the state’s landlord-tenant act.
Status: Senate Rules 2
Sponsor: Connors
WR Position: Support
House Exec: 13-0, House Floor: 96-0-2, Senate Exec: 11-0
“Middle Housing” types are duplex to sixplex units, townhouses, cottage houses, and other smaller housing types that fit within existing residential neighborhoods. The lack of housing supply is caused by lack of building land, and antiquated city zoning that locks up over 70% of residential land solely for single-family housing. Allowing middle housing in all residential areas would still allow single-family housing, but provide more options to increase housing supply and affordable homeownership.
Status: Senate Housing
Sponsor: Bateman
WR Position: Support
House Exec: 9-3-1, House Approps: 25-5-1, House Floor: 75-21-2
The housing supply crisis is not just an urban problem. While some counties have enacted ordinances allowing detached accessory dwelling units (ADUs) in rural areas, other county ADU ordinances have been rejected by the Growth Hearings Boards. In these counties, large attached ADUs could be built, but smaller more affordable ADUs are prohibited. This legislation is based on a recent detached ADU ordinance adopted in Snohomish County with bipartisan and unanimous support, and that was not appealed to the Growth Board. The bill allows detached ADUs, but regulates the size, appearance, and location of detached ADUs in rural areas.
Status: House Rules R
Sponsor: Tharinger
WR Position: Support
Reducing homelessness in Washington state through capital expenditures for programs that address housing insecurity.
Status: House Capital Budget
Sponsor: Tharinger
WR Position: Support
Increasing housing options through lot splitting.
Status: Senate Local Government, Land Use
Sponsor: Barkis
WR Position: Support
House Exec: 13-0, House Floor: 94-2-2
Washington State’s real estate agency law, Chapter 18.86 RCW, has not been updated since its adoption in the 1990s. Existing law does not require certain basic consumer protections, and does not reflect modern industry best practices. This legislation will both protect consumers and avoid litigation seen in other states. For example, the bill would improve disclosures of real estate broker duties, require a written buyer agency agreement for a broker to be compensated, require terms of compensation in writing, and ensure that the legal duties of brokers protect all parties in a transaction – not just the broker’s own client.
House Exec: 13-0
Streamlining Development Regulations
Status: Senate Local Government Committee, Land Use
Sponsor: Klicker
WR Position: Support
House Exec: 12-0-1, House Floor: 94-3-1
Concerning consolidating local permit review processes.
Status: House Appropriations Committee
Sponsor: Peterson
WR Position: Support
House Exec: 7-0
Concerning consolidating local permit review processes.
Status: Senate Local Government, Land Use
Sponsor: Gregerson
WR Position: Support
House Exec: 11-2, House Floor: 81-15-2
Protecting tenants by prohibiting predatory residential rent practices and by applying the consumer protection act to the residential landlord-tenant act and the manufactured/mobile home landlord-tenant act.
Status: House Appropriations
Sponsor: Macri
WR Position: Oppose
House Exec: 7-6
Concerning residential rent increases under the residential landlord-tenant act and the manufactured/mobile home landlord-tenant act.
Status: House Rules R
Sponsor: Ramel
WR Position: Oppose
House Exec: 7-6, House Appropriations: 17-13-1
Creating the covenant homeownership account and program to address the history of housing discrimination due to racially restrictive real estate covenants in Washington state.
Status: Senate Housing
Sponsor: Taylor
WR Position: Support
House Exec: 8-5, House Appropriations 17-13-1, House Floor: 53-43-2
Supporting Washington's clean energy economy and transitioning to a clean, affordable, and reliable energy future.
Status: Senate Environment
Sponsor: Doglio
WR Position: Oppose
House Exec: 9-6, House Floor: 52-44-2
Increasing the supply of affordable housing by modifying the state and local real estate excise tax.
Status: House Finance
Sponsor: Chopp
WR Position: Oppose
House Exec: 4-3
Creating a "Homes for Heroes" Program
Status: House Capital Budget
Sponsor: Connors
WR Position: Support
House Exec: 13-0
Exempting buildings with 12 or fewer units that are no more than two stories from the definition of multiunit residential building.
Status: House Housing
Sponsor: Padden
WR Position: Support
Senate Exec: 11-0, Senate Floor: 48-0-1
Requiring the registration of rental and vacant housing units.
Status: Senate Ways & Means
Sponsor: Kuderer
WR Position: Oppose
Senate Exec: 6-5
Increasing middle housing in areas traditionally dedicated to single-family detached housing.
Status: Senate Ways & Means
Sponsor: Trudeau
WR Position: Support
Senate Exec: 6-5
Reforming the real estate agency law.
Status: House Committee on Consumer Protection & Business
Sponsor: Stanford
WR Position: Support
Senate Exec: 11-0, Senate Floor: 48-0-1
Reducing homelessness in Washington state through capital expenditures for programs that address housing insecurity.
Status: Senate Ways & Means
Sponsor: Trudeau
WR Position: Support
Improving the state's response to climate change by updating the state's planning framework.
Status: Senate Ways & Means
Sponsor: Lovelett
WR Position: Oppose
Senate Exec: 4-1
Status: House Housing
Sponsor: Shewmake
WR Position: Support
Senate Exec: 5-0, Senate Floor: 42-6-1
Condominiums are the most affordable type of homeownership, but the supply of new condominiums in Washington is among the worst in the country. This bill improves the condominium market by improving the process to repair condominium defects (“Right to Cure”), streamlines the process for construction of smaller condominium projects, ensures reasonable impact fees for condominiums, and provides a condominium tax incentive for certain qualified first-time homebuyers.
Status: Senate Ways & Means
Sponsor: Shewmake
WR Position: Support
Senate Exec: 10-1
Consolidating local permit review processes.
Status: House Local Government
Sponsor: Mullet
WR Position: Support
Senate Exec: 5-0, Senate Floor: 49-0
Concerning housing programs administered by the department of commerce.
Status: House Capital Budget
Sponsor: Mullet
WR Position: Support
Senate Exec: 11-0, Senate Floor: 49-0
Increasing housing options through lot splitting.
Status: Senate Rules 2
Sponsor: Frame
WR Position: Support
Senate Exec: 5-0
Reducing local governments' land use permitting workloads.
Status: House Local Government
Sponsor: Salomon
WR Position: Support
Senate Exec: 4-1, Senate Floor: 49-0
Washington State’s multi-billion dollar transit investments necessitate land use and zoning near transit that increases housing supply and community services for transit users. Transit-Oriented Development (“TOD”) regulations would apply in areas next to the largest transit facilities like light rail to ensure that new housing supply is commensurate with the State’s transit investments. Cities would have flexibility to allow different types of TOD near station areas.
Status: House Housing
Sponsor: Liias
WR Position: Support
Senate Land Use Exec: 3-2, Senate Transportation: 14-1, Senate Floor: 40-8-1
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Housing Report
Lt. Governor Denny Heck presented his 2021 Housing Report, including "Washington State's Housing Affordability Crisis" and "The Racial Wealth Gap IS the Housing Gap" during our 2022 Legislative Days event. We strongly encourage REALTORS to review the report!