Answer the questions, download the lease. Free, no account, and it holds your figures to what Washington allows.
What Washington law does to your lease
These are the figures the builder holds you to. Each one is the statute's, not ours, and the citation is there so you can read it yourself.
| Rule | Washington | Where it says so |
|---|
| Most a landlord may take as a deposit | No statutory limit | RCW 59.18.260 |
| Earliest a late fee may be charged | 5 days after rent is due | RCW 59.18.170(2) |
| Most a late fee may be | No statutory limit, but it has to be reasonableNo fee at all while rent is within five days of its due date; after that it may run from the first day late. | RCW 59.18.170(2) |
| Notice before the landlord may enter | 48 hoursTwo days for repairs and inspections; one day when the entry is to show the dwelling. | RCW 59.18.150(6) |
| Notice to end a month-to-month tenancy | 60 days from the landlord, 20 from the tenantWashington landlords cannot end a month-to-month tenancy without a cause the statute lists. 60 days covers the business or economic grounds, 90 days the owner moving in or selling a single-family home, and 20 days a tenant sharing the landlord's kitchen or bathroom. | RCW 59.18.200(1)(a), 59.18.650 |
What Washington makes you disclose
- Written checklist for the deposit
- A deposit may be taken only under a written rental agreement that states the conditions for withholding it, and only if the landlord gives the tenant a signed written checklist of the condition of the dwelling at the start of the tenancy. A landlord who takes a deposit without the checklist is liable for the whole of it. RCW 59.18.260
- Fire safety and protection
- The landlord must give written notice of fire safety and protection information: smoke detection devices, whether the building has a sprinkler system, a fire alarm system, a smoking policy and an emergency notification, evacuation or relocation plan. RCW 59.18.060(12)
- Indoor mold
- The landlord must give the tenant the Department of Health information about the health hazards of indoor mold and how to control its growth, at the start of the tenancy. RCW 59.18.060(14)
- Special flood hazard area
- On agreements entered after December 31, 2026 the landlord must disclose that the property may sit in a special flood hazard area and recommend that the tenant carry renter's and flood insurance. RCW 59.18.060(13)
The clause most landlords get wrong
Rent stated as a base figure with mandatory fees bolted on beside it. If a fee is not optional, it is rent, and several states now say so outright: the lease has to carry one total figure that the landlord may not charge above. The builder asks for the total and then asks how much of it is fees, which is the same information in the order the law wants it.
The second is the assistance animal. A no-pets clause that does not carve one out is a fair-housing problem, not a pet problem, and no pet rent or pet deposit may be charged for one. Your lease says so whether or not you allow pets.
After it is signed
Download the PDF and it is yours, account or not. If you want the tenant to sign it without printing anything, a free Kouzr account sends it for signature, files the executed copy against the tenancy, and keeps it beside the listing, the rent record and the deposit accounting, so the paperwork for that home is in one place when the tenancy ends.
Is this Washington lease legally binding?
A written lease signed by the landlord and every adult tenant is a contract, and this one is built to say what Washington requires a residential lease to say. What it is not is legal advice, and no lawyer has reviewed it. It is a form you complete yourself, the same category as the fill-in-the-blank lease sold in an office supply shop, and it is worth having a lawyer in your state read it before you rely on it, especially on a property you will hold for years.
How much can a landlord charge as a security deposit in Washington?
Washington sets no statutory ceiling (RCW 59.18.260), so the figure is yours to choose. One month is the usual ask and two is the most a tenant will normally accept; every dollar above that is money you have to hold, account for line by line at move-out, and return on the state's clock.
Can a landlord charge a late fee in Washington?
Yes, but not without limit. Washington allows no late fee until 5 days after rent is due, and sets no ceiling on the amount, which leaves the common-law rule that it has to be a reasonable estimate of what a late payment costs you (RCW 59.18.170(2)). A fee charged earlier or larger than that is not enforceable, and the rest of the lease still stands. No fee at all while rent is within five days of its due date; after that it may run from the first day late.
How much notice does a landlord have to give before entering in Washington?
48 hours for anything that is not an emergency, at a reasonable hour (RCW 59.18.150(6)). A lease cannot shorten it, so the builder raises your figure if you enter a smaller one. Genuine emergencies need no notice anywhere. Two days for repairs and inspections; one day when the entry is to show the dwelling.
How much notice ends a month-to-month tenancy in Washington?
60 days of written notice from the landlord and 20 from the tenant (RCW 59.18.200(1)(a), 59.18.650). The builder writes that figure into the term clause. A lease may agree on longer notice than the statute; one that gives less is unenforceable to that extent, and the statutory period governs instead. Washington landlords cannot end a month-to-month tenancy without a cause the statute lists. 60 days covers the business or economic grounds, 90 days the owner moving in or selling a single-family home, and 20 days a tenant sharing the landlord's kitchen or bathroom.
Do I have to include a lead-based paint disclosure?
Only if the home was built before 1978, and then yes, everywhere in the country. Federal law requires the landlord to disclose known lead-based paint, hand over any report they have, and give the tenant the EPA pamphlet before the tenant is committed to the lease (42 U.S.C. 4852d). Enter the year built and the builder attaches it for you.
Can I have the tenant sign it online?
Yes. Download the PDF and sign it however you like, or make a free Kouzr account and send it to the tenant for signature from here: they get a link, sign on a phone, and the executed copy files itself against the tenancy alongside rent and the deposit record. The PDF is free either way and does not require an account.
Kouzr is not a law firm and this is not legal advice. The builder produces a form you complete yourself, and no lawyer has reviewed the document it assembles. Have one admitted in Washington read it before you rely on it.