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Don’t Break the New Rental Laws!

Posted by Johnine Larsen on October 24, 2016
| General Interest, Home Maintenance Tips
| 0

skyline-936589_640For renters and landlords alike, major changes are happening to Seattle’s rental scene. We’ve outlined the most significant changes below.

New “Source of Income” Anti-Discrimination Policies

  • Prohibits discrimination against renters who use subsidies or alternative sources of income to pay for their housing costs, such as Social Security or child support. This is meant to protect renters who might otherwise be discriminated against because of their source of income.
  • Creates a new “first-in-time” rule (effective January 1, 2017) that requires landlords to screen rental applications in chronological order. Landlords must offer tenancy to the first applicant who meets all the screening criteria.

Enhanced Tenant Protections

  • Owners/landlords cannot increase rent if a housing unit fails to comply with the Rental Registration Inspection Ordinance (RRIO) checklist until the failures are corrected.
  • When changing a rental agreement, that notice must include details about how the tenant may obtain information on their rights and obligations.
  • The Seattle Department of Construction and Inspections is now responsible for regulating rent increase notices and prohibited acts such as illegal entry by a landlord, utility shut-off or raising rent in retaliation for a tenant asserting rights.
  • You can learn more about these requirements here.

seattle-1731382_640

Tenant Relocation Assistance Avoidance

  • Owners/landlords cannot increase rent ahead of development activities such as remodeling or demolition of a property. In many cases, if an owner/landlord want to development his/her property, but that development would displacement the tenant, the owner/landlord must obtain a relocation license and pay for relocation assistance to low-income tenants.
  • If you are planning development work on your property, please call the Seattle Department of Construction and Inspections at (206) 615-0808 to avoid delays and to determine whether a tenant relocation license will be required for your project.

Selling or Re-Occupying a Unit

  • Owners/landlords who plan to sell a single-family home must give tenants a minimum of 90 days notice (increased from 60 days).
  • Owners/landlords who plan to occupy a tenant’s unit must give that tenant a minimum of 90 days notice (increased from 20 days).
  • Owners/landlords may request a hardship exception to shorten the notice period in certain circumstances.

Low-Cost Weatherization

  • The Seattle Office of Housing provides weatherization services (heating system upgrades, insulation, fans, air sealing, etc.) for qualifying apartment buildings for little to no cost to the owner. In exchange, the owner agrees to restrict rent increases for at least three years and prioritize renting to low-income tenants.
  • To learn more, call (206) 684-0255 or visit here.

Rental Registration and Inspection Ordinance

  • The final due date for rental housing properties to register with the Rental Registration and Inspection Ordinance is December 31st, 2016. More than 25,000 properties, representing 140,000 rental units have registered so far.
  • Inspections are required every 5-10 years. The City randomly selects about 400 properties per month for inspection.
  • For more information about RRIO, please visit www.seattle.gov/RRIO.

seattle-1083788_640

Public Meetings

The Seattle Office for Civil Rights is developing administrative rules for the Source of Income Ordinance (“first-in-time” rule). It will offer two public meeting to discuss it:

  • Public Meeting #1
    • Thursday, October 27 at 6 p.m.
    • New Holly Gathering Hall (7054 32nd Ave. S)
    • Learn about ordinance requirements, ask questions and raise areas that are unclear and that may require administrative rules.
  • Public Meeting #2
    • Thursday, November 17 at 7 p.m.
    • Bitter Lake Community Center (13035 Linden Ave N)
    • Learn about ordinance requirements, ask questions and comment on the proposed administrative rules.
  • Childcare and language interpretation will be provided at each meeting. To request an accommodation or language interpretation please call (206) 684-4514.
  • Space is limited. Click here to register for your preferred meeting date and click here to read more about Seattle’s Source of Income Ordinance.

For Other Information on Rental Housing in Seattle

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    Michael Ryan
    Michael Ryan
    19:04 10 Oct 22
    We had a fantastic experience working with the Real Estate Gals to buy our first home in Seattle! Johnine and Tonya met with us before the pandemic and remained super patient and helpful with us as we went hot/cold on whether or not to buy *several times* over the past few years. When we finally... found the home we eventually bought, Tonya's help, advice, and feedback were all invaluable to us. She was also super responsive to calls and texts, and was just great to work with in general! Hopefully we won't be looking for a new house again soon, but we will absolutely go back to the Real Estate Gals when we do!read more
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    19:03 27 Sep 22
    Johnine, Tonya and Scott have seen us through 4 houses and were with us every step of the way. I can't say enough about their professionalism, expertise and kindness in dealing with us for the last 27 years!
    Simon Ninon
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    03:23 23 Sep 22
    Unfortunately, my wife and I had a bad experience with Johnine.We were FTHB in WS. Our search was fast (under contract within 2 weeks, involving only 2 visits with Johnine, and 4 with Tonya as we did a lot of open-houses on our own). We were on top of everything and had an excellent lender (Ryan... Maxwell from Homestreet) allowing us to close 3 weeks later.We reached out to this agency after having a mediocre experience with Redfin. Given their stellar rating, we were expecting to be more lucky with Johnine and her team.After an initial meeting with Johnine, we had some trial visits with Tonya over one evening, and it was excellent. Tonya was scouting the different homes, taking the time to discuss with us, and sounded very knowledgeable. We really enjoyed our experience and were looking forward to keep working with her.After these visits, we only got to interact with Johnine.To say that Johnine lacked professionalism or represents too many people is an understatement.We only had 2 visits scheduled with her, and she had been significantly late for both (15-30 minutes), even though she is the one that set the time. Both time was because she was touring homes with another customer on the other side of Seattle and couldn’t make it on time for our visits.This was mildly annoying, but the second property was one we wanted to put an offer on, so we stayed put.Then, things turned chaotic. As we signified interest in putting an offer on that second property, it was a nightmare to schedule a time to meet with Johnine. The offer deadline was on a Monday, but Johnine could only meet us on the Sunday before. She had to reschedule that meeting 3 times, even though she was the one setting the time every single time.During that meeting, Johnine did not remember the offer Deadline correctly and thought it was on Tuesday. If I didn’t bring it up, Johnine was only planning to work on drafting the offer the following day and might have missed the offer.After our offer was accepted, communication became really abysmal. As a FTHB, I do not expect to be baby-sitted, but I was hopping that Johnine would at least detail us what to expect and when. However, she took the fact that we were on top of things as an excuse to not do anything than the bare minimum. This caused unnecessary stress on our end as we were trying to figure out stuff completely on our own. All we had from Johnine for the following 3 weeks was a brief “next step” email with poorly worded shallow details on what to expect, and barely understandable instructions regarding utilities. That’s it. Even at open-houses, listing agents distribute printed PDF with more useful information than what Johnine provided us.At no point did Johnine mention anything regarding a final walkthrough that we had to schedule ourselves and that we didn’t even do with her.The ice on the cake was closing day, where we had literally no idea what to expect the day of.Johnine was out of town and couldn’t get the key for us, so Tonya was scheduled to do it for us and meet with us the following day.But the day of, Tonya informed us BY EMAIL that she couldn’t make it, and that the seller’s agent left our home key under a rock in the garden for us to pick up anytime.Neither Johnine nor Tonya tried to arrange for another agent/staff to pick up the key for us to make sure that we were able to enter our property. They did not even bother calling us to check what was the best option for us or apologize for the inconvenience.I had to interrupt my work day in panic to go figure out what rock was the correct one and pick up the key.Johnine received a $27,000 commission out of that purchase where I felt she did not represent us better than a Redfin agent and put no effort to represent us at any step of the process. Beware.read more
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    Lindsey Cooper
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    Marian DiPerna, LMP
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    linda wright
    linda wright
    00:45 04 Dec 19
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    Paddy Lazar
    Paddy Lazar
    23:42 03 Dec 19
    I was lucky enough to work with Johnine and her very competent team to sell my home. I have to tell you how easy the entire process was. On her wise suggestion I had my home inspected, as there actually were a number of maintenance items that came up in that inspection and she even arranged to have... all of the repairs completed in a very short time. The only thing I had to do was to let the repair folks in. Then, to my surprise, Johnine , had all the windows and the whole house cleaned before listing it. She then had the house beautifully staged and had the yard cleaned up with even a little landscaping thrown in. The house sold within the week for OVER full price!Everyone I dealt with was always kind, helpful and professional, their communication was exemplary all through the process. I’ve decided to rent for a while but you can be assured that it will be Johnine and her team that I will go back to when ready to purchase a new house. I have sung her praises to all that I know.read more
    soumak ghosh
    soumak ghosh
    00:00 14 Nov 19
    They were representing the seller, and I was the buyer. Very limited communication from the agents. Waited days for a response for any email/text. I would eventually get an answer after multiple follow-ups. Almost cost us the deal.[Update]I have seen all the text/conversations of my agent with... your agency. Regarding the oil tank decommissioning, according to the contract, the tank was to be decommissioned 5 days before closing. When asked about so, 5 days before closing ( for which I have seen the text/email conversations of), you gave my agent very little to no information about it and even said it was on schedule. It was only after my agent called the oil tank decommissioning company herself that we got to know that it was not even scheduled 2 days before closing.Any buyer who was not as intended to buy the property as I was; could have walked away due to breach of contract. We got the final documentation 2 hours before the closing deadline. It was only after I wrote the review that your agents became responsive.read more
    Sarah Donaldson
    Sarah Donaldson
    18:44 18 Jul 19
    Darcie was such a joy to work with. She felt like family during the sale of our house and the search for our new home. We may have found our forever home, but if we ever need a Realtor in future, Darcie from Real Estate Gals will be our first call.
    Brian Heagler
    Brian Heagler
    16:55 02 Jun 19
    I have worked with Johnine and her team for 19 years and have always received personal, knowledgeable and professional service and attention! There is never and pressure and they will guide you away from a property when appropriate, which is always appreciated when a market is hot and the tendency... is to move quickly. I trust them and have never been let down!read more
    Anne Slater
    Anne Slater
    18:03 25 May 19
    Johnine Larsen is fabulous! She listened and came up with ways we could get what we wanted in a house and stay within our limited budget. When we found the house we wanted, she moved super fast to get the house inspected and implemented creative ideas to make our offer appealing. And out of 13... offers, we were selected and got our house. I recommend her to anyone buying a home.read more
    Amy Burdick
    Amy Burdick
    19:13 24 May 19
    Real Estate Gals made sure we found our perfect house! Then, when we were up against other bidders, Johnine worked tirelessly to ensure we were tops! Her extensive real estate experience combined with exceptional character and integrity provided peace of mind throughout the process. She also made... sure we received the right value as a seller and got the transaction done quickly and efficiently. Simply stated: there is nobody better to help you find your dream home.read more
    Bill Hollman
    Bill Hollman
    22:21 19 May 19
    I'd give Real Estate Gals 6 stars if I could. We have used them multiple times, both in selling and buying homes in Seattle and the surrounding area. I can't say enough about the professionalism, knowledge, and patience they bring to the task of buying a new home, or selling your current... residence.And they know the Seattle area so well, they'll offer valuable insights into the pros and cons of any location you may be to considering.Look no further, call Johnine at Real Estate Gals. You will be glad you did!read more
    Beth Guerra
    Beth Guerra
    01:14 18 May 19
    Johnine was a breath of fresh air in the real estate market. She listened intently to our wishes and goals, and was tireless in her search for our perfect house. She is well versed in both Seattle and the surrounding areas. She made sure all the details were taken care of after the inspection, and... made the closing process seamless. She even gifted us with a housewarming present. Nearly 7 years later, we still receive holiday cards and well wishes. I highly recommend Real Estate Gals and will look no further in the future.read more
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    15:55 17 May 19
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    Aidan Key
    Aidan Key
    15:44 17 May 19
    Johnine and the Real Estate Gals brilliantly took us through the home buying process two different times. Their willingness to educate (I was new), hear our home hopes, and support us through the process are a few of the reasons that I highly recommend this team. Speaking of a team, I love their... collaborative business model - it meant that we--the home buyers--always had a returned phone call and an ability to look at a house on OUR schedule. Truly felt like they place the customer first!read more
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