The Seattle City Council has banned most rental fees starting July 2027 and now the rest of the state is asking, “What about us?”
By Aaron Kirk Douglas
Seattle’s City Council voted unanimously in August to prohibit almost all mandatory rental fees, with enforcement provisions, effective July 2027.
What survives
Application screening fees, certain move-in fees, security and pet damage deposits, and utility charges. Everything else goes away inside city limits, from $85 lease renewal fees and $35 resident benefit packages to technology, amenity, admin, pest, and common-area electricity charges, according to reports.
One West Seattle renter profiled by the Seattle Times now pays about $80 a month in fees added since 2021, close to $1,000 a year, on top of a 25% rent increase.
A statewide ban died in Olympia last year after industry lobbying. Bellingham, Olympia, and Shoreline already restrict fees, and Shoreline bans common-area utility charges outright, which Seattle did not.
The Washington Multifamily Housing Association’s (WMFHA) Jake Mayson warned the city that landlords will fold fees into rent, making Seattle look artificially pricier, and noted the 2025 statewide cap of 7% plus inflation, up to 10%, limits how fast that can happen.
Why it matters
Ancillary income is coming out of the Seattle model in July 2027.
Owners with $80 to $100 a month in fees per unit need to decide whether that revenue moves into base rent and, under the state cap, whether it can move fast enough.
Start on the 2027 renewal cycle now. We expect the fee ban to be reintroduced in Olympia in 2027, with Seattle as the template and utility billing loopholes as the next target.
Investors should underwrite fee income at zero in Seattle acquisitions and consider reducing it elsewhere in the state.
About the author:
HFO Research (Aaron Kirk Douglas) from HFO Investment Real Estate’s Multifamily Marketwatch YouTube podcast, hosted by partner Greg Frick. Aaron Kirk Douglas is director of market intelligence for HFO Investment Real Estate In Portland. Have questions about what these trends mean for your property? Call HFO at (503) 241-5541.
