For the first time, Washington’s attorney general has enforced the state’s new cap on rent hikes, fining eight landlords $2,000 each for violating the law.

For the first time, Washington state’s attorney general has enforced the state’s new cap on rent hikes, fining eight landlords $2,000 each for violating the law.

House Bill 1217 took effect in early May. The landlords told tenants before that time about rent increases that would exceed the new maximums. But these increases were tied to leases that renewed after the law took effect, according to the attorney general’s office. For example, one rent increase for a tenant in Lakewood would have begun June 22.

In each case, the attorney general notified the landlords that their rent hikes were illegal. All the landlords rescinded them and refunded any payments tenants made under the unlawful increases, according to court filings.

  • Powderhorn@beehaw.orgMEnglish
    5·
    3 months ago

    For single-family homes, there’s a really easy solution: only allow individuals to own them. This doesn’t kill the rental market; it’s just common sense. You personally want to build a rental empire? Fine. But no hiding behind an LLC or other corporate structure – if you want to rent-seek, you shouldn’t have the protections of a business.

    Multifamily is of course a different beast, as individual ownership rarely occurs above very small complexes. Still, capping rent increases at inflation plus minimum-wage increase (we’re talking Washington here; it goes up annually) would go a long way toward stabilizing budgeting for renters.

    It astounds me how many homeowners who locked in mortgages at $800 at 3% simply refuse to believe there’s an affordability crisis in the rental market. “Just make 15% more next year” isn’t particularly useful advice in a deteriorating job market.

    • TehPers@beehaw.orgEnglish
      1·
      3 months ago

      Hey my mortgage is 2.75%. For every dollar I save to move somewhere nicer though, the homes I’m looking at go up by $2-3. I don’t know how I’m supposed to ever move into a nicer home than what I have now when I’m constantly chasing the price of those homes and getting further and further. It’s not even like I make too little money either, just that I didn’t have enough money 5 years ago to even be in the race to begin with.