Washington: Landlord Entry Notice Requirements

Requirements one by one

Governing law

Washington's rule is RCW 59.18.150, part of the state's Residential Landlord-Tenant
Act. It pairs a tenant's duty not to "unreasonably withhold consent" with a firm
notice rule and a limit in subsection (7): the landlord "has no other right of access
except by court order, arbitrator or by consent of the tenant." That makes the listed
reasons the only ones a landlord may enter for. (The statute's middle subsections,
(2) through (4), deal with something different — search warrants for fire and code
officials — and are not about a landlord letting themselves in.)

Advance notice required

The core rule is two days: "the landlord shall give the tenant at least two days'
written notice of his or her intent to enter and shall enter only at reasonable
times" (§ 59.18.150(6)). Showings are the exception in the other direction — the
landlord needs only "at least one day's notice" to show the unit to a prospective
buyer or new tenant. Both figures give way to an emergency or a situation where
notice is impracticable.

Reasons a landlord may enter

Subsection (1) lists them: to inspect the premises; make necessary or agreed repairs,
alterations, or improvements; supply necessary or agreed services; or exhibit the
unit to "prospective or actual purchasers, mortgagees, tenants, workers, or
contractors." Because subsection (7) allows "no other right of access" outside a court
order, an arbitrator's order, or your consent, a lease cannot hand the landlord a
broader right to come in.

Permitted hours

Entry must be at "reasonable times" (§ 59.18.150(6)). The statute sets no exact clock
for a landlord's entry, so reasonableness depends on the situation. (A fixed
7:00 p.m.-to-8:00 a.m. limit exists elsewhere in the section, but only for a code
official acting under a court inspection warrant — not for your landlord.)

When no notice is needed

Subsection (5) is the no-notice rule: "The landlord may enter the dwelling unit
without consent of the tenant in case of emergency or abandonment." Subsection (6)
adds one more — notice is excused when "it is impracticable to do so." An emergency
means a real one, such as a fire or a burst pipe.

Form and delivery of the notice

The notice must be written, and it carries two specific content requirements that
tenants should check for. It "must state the exact time and date or dates of entry"
or a window with "the earliest and latest possible times of entry," and it "must also
specify the telephone number to which the tenant may communicate any objection or
request to reschedule the entry" (§ 59.18.150(6)). A notice that skips the time
window or leaves off a callback number falls short of the statute.

Special rules for showings

Showings run on the shorter one-day notice, and the statute guards against overuse:
you "shall not unreasonably withhold consent" once the landlord gives "at least one
day's notice" to show the place to a prospective buyer or new tenant, but the landlord
"shall not unreasonably interfere with a tenant's enjoyment of the rented dwelling
unit by excessively exhibiting the dwelling unit" (§ 59.18.150(6)). Frequent,
disruptive showings can cross that line.

Tenant's remedies for unlawful entry

Washington backs the entry rules with money. After you serve "one written
notification alleging in good faith violations of this section listing the date and
time of the violation," a landlord who keeps violating is "liable for up to one
hundred dollars for each violation after receipt of the notice," and the prevailing
side "may recover costs ... and may also recover reasonable attorneys' fees"
(§ 59.18.150(8)). The landlord also "shall not abuse the right of access or use it to
harass the tenant" (6), and subsection (9) leaves your common-law rights intact. The
same $100 tool runs the other way, so a tenant who unreasonably blocks a lawful,
properly-noticed entry can owe it too.

What trips people up

The written notice needs a callback number, not just a time. Section 59.18.150(6)
requires the notice to give both the exact time or window and "the telephone number to
which the tenant may communicate any objection or request to reschedule." Landlords
often send a date-and-time notice and forget the number — which means the notice does
not meet the statute.

Showings get less notice, not more. The general rule is two days, but a showing to
a prospective buyer or new tenant needs only one day's notice. That shorter figure is
easy to miss.

The $100 penalty needs a written warning first. The per-violation liability in
subsection (8) kicks in only after you serve "one written notification" of the
violation with its date and time. A single unannounced entry, without that written
notice on file, does not by itself trigger the $100.

Common questions

How much notice does my Washington landlord need to enter? At least two days'
written notice for a repair, service, inspection, or general entry, and at least one
day's notice to show the unit to a prospective buyer or tenant (§ 59.18.150(6)) — and
the landlord may enter only at reasonable times.

Can my landlord enter without notice in an emergency? Yes. "The landlord may enter
the dwelling unit without consent of the tenant in case of emergency or abandonment"
(§ 59.18.150(5)), and notice is also excused when giving it is impracticable.

My landlord entered without proper notice. What can I do? Send a written notice
listing the date and time of the violation. If the landlord keeps it up, they can be
liable for up to $100 per later violation, and a prevailing tenant can recover costs
and attorney fees (§ 59.18.150(8)).

Can I refuse to let my landlord show the apartment while I still live there? Not
unreasonably, once they give at least one day's notice — but the landlord also cannot
"unreasonably interfere with" your enjoyment "by excessively exhibiting" the unit
(§ 59.18.150(6)), so an overloaded showing schedule may be challengeable.

Statutes and sources

• RCW 59.18.150 — Washington's landlord right-of-entry statute: the consent-and-purposes list (1); no-notice for emergency or abandonment (5); the two-day written-notice rule, time/telephone-number content requirements, one-day showing notice, and no-excessive-exhibiting limit (6); the "no other right of access" limit (7); the up-to-$100-per-violation penalty and attorney-fee provision (8); and the common-law savings clause (9).
  https://app.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=59.18.150 (accessed 2026-07-11)