Housing & Tenant · Landlord Entry

Landlord Entry Notice in Washington

How much warning a landlord must give before entering your home in Washington, the hours entry is allowed, and what to do if they walk in unannounced, cited to the statute.

CitedStatute §59.18.150Source law.justia.com

Notice before entry · Washington

2 days to enter, 1 day to show, and a phone number you can call

48-hour notice required

Washington requires at least two days written notice for ordinary entry and one day to show the unit under RCW 59.18.150, and the notice must give a phone number you can use to object or reschedule.

Advance notice48 hours

Allowed entry hoursGoverned by the required time specification. The notice must give an exact time, or the earliest and latest possible times within a window.

Entry without notice in an emergencyYes

Statute§59.18.150

The rules and your rights in Washington

The notice, the allowed hours, the reasons a landlord may enter, and what to do about an unlawful entry.

Advance notice	48 hours before entry
Allowed entry hours	Governed by the required time specification. The notice must give an exact time, or the earliest and latest possible times within a window.
Reasons a landlord may enter	To inspect the premises, make repairs, supply services, and exhibit the unit to prospective or actual tenants or purchasers.
Emergency entry	A landlord may enter without the usual notice in an emergency or where the unit has been abandoned. The two-day and one-day notice periods apply to ordinary entries and showings.
Local ordinance	Seattle and several other Washington cities add tenant protections, so check your city rules where you live.
Statute	Wash. Rev. Code §59.18.150

If the landlord enters unlawfully

Washington prices the breach. After you serve written notification of the violations, a landlord who keeps violating the section can owe up to 100 dollars per violation plus actual damages, court costs, and reasonable attorney fees, and you can seek injunctive relief on a pattern of harassment.

What you can do right now

Concrete, neutral steps if a landlord keeps entering your Washington home without proper notice. This is legal information, not legal advice.

Check the notice for a phone number
Washington requires the notice to give a phone number you can call to object or ask to reschedule. A notice missing that is defective, so if you only got a time with no way to respond, note it.
Match the period to the purpose
Ordinary entry needs two days written notice, but a showing needs only one day. Read the notice to see which applies, and check that it states an exact time or the earliest and latest possible times.
Put your complaint in writing to unlock the penalty
The up-to-100-dollar penalty applies after you serve written notification of the violations and the landlord keeps violating. So if entries are a problem, send that written notice and keep a copy, because it triggers the remedy.
Get local help
To claim the penalty or seek an injunction, contact a local Washington legal aid office. Search for legal aid in your area, and check any Seattle rule that applies.

This is general legal information, not legal advice. Read your own lease and check for a local ordinance, since either can change what applies to your home.

What Washington renters get wrong

Washington is the only state that requires the landlord to publish a way of being argued with. Under RCW 59.18.150 the notice must carry a telephone number the renter can call to object or ask for a different time, which turns a one-way announcement into the start of a conversation. Washington also splits the figure by purpose, giving two days written notice for an ordinary entry and only one to show the place, and it must state an exact time or the earliest and latest possible times within a window rather than a vague day. Then it prices the breach: up to a hundred dollars a violation, plus actual damages and attorney fees, once the renter has put the complaint in writing and the landlord keeps violating. Because the official statute site refused access and a 2025 amendment on notice content was flagged, this page is held as cited pending a primary read, but the shape is clear and the phone-number requirement is the detail most renters have never heard of.

Common questions

Is my Washington notice valid without a phone number?

Likely defective. RCW 59.18.150 requires the notice to specify a telephone number you can use to object or request to reschedule the entry. A notice missing that number does not meet the statute as described, so keep the notices you receive.

Why is the showing notice shorter in Washington?

Washington splits the periods by purpose. Ordinary entry needs two days written notice, but showing the unit to prospective tenants or purchasers needs only one day, on the logic that showings are more routine and time-sensitive.

How do I trigger the $100 penalty in Washington?

The up-to-100-dollar per-violation penalty applies after you serve the landlord written notification of the violations and they continue to violate the section. So the written notice is the step that unlocks the remedy, along with actual damages and fees.

What if the notice gives a whole day rather than a time in Washington?

The statute requires an exact time and date, or a specified window stating the earliest and latest possible times of entry. A notice that just names a day, with no time range, does not meet that requirement, so it can be challenged.

Primary source

→ Wash. Rev. Code §59.18.150

Revised Code of Washington (RCW 59.18.150, via Justia mirror) · law.justia.com

Cholilurrohman
The structure is well documented, but app.leg.wa.gov refused the connection and there is no FindLaw coverage, so RCW 59.18.150 was read from search results rather than a primary source. A 2025 amendment on notice content was also flagged. Held as Cited pending a primary read. Editorial standards →

Not legal advicePlainStatute provides plain-language summaries of public law for general information only. This is not legal advice. Statutes change; always confirm current requirements with the official source linked above before acting.

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