Recent News

In Washington State, the county assessor values real property to reflect the property’s true and fair market value, in accordance with its highest and best use. The assessor bases the value on what a buyer in an arms-length transaction would pay for the property. The county assessor may use several different methods to appraise real… Read More

In Washington State, real estate brokers may represent buyers and sellers on opposite sides of the same transaction. These agents function as “dual agents.”  I will openly admit my own immediate anxiety at the prospect of dual agency. I believe that in most cases, buyers and sellers would benefit from having their own independent brokers,… Read More

Individuals who co-own real property often do so in a variety of different arrangements. They may own community property as a married couple. They may have purchased real estate as tenants in common with siblings or friends, with each retaining their independent right to sell their own interest. They may own real property as joint… Read More

On May 8, 2023, Governor Jay Inslee signed House Bill 1110 into law. I previously wrote an article regarding the congressional deliberations over House Bill 1110 here. While proponents argued that passing this law would expand access to housing, detractors expressed concern about the significant reduction in local control over zoning throughout Washington State. Whatever… Read More

In late April 2023, South Korean college student, Noh Huyn-soo shocked the art world by eating a famous art installation (the “Comedian”)created by Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan. Yes, he ate the installation – the “installation” being a banana taped to a wall in Seoul’s Leeum Museum of Art. His elaborate art heist consisted of removing… Read More

It is official: Washington State can now collect a state capital gains tax. The Washington State legislature had passed a capital gains tax levied at a rate of seven (7%) percent on the sale and exchange of certain types of long-term capital assets, including, but not limited to, stocks, bonds, and tangible assets. The state… Read More

While you may immediately think of movie theaters with several separate screens, this article is (perhaps disappointingly) referring to the construction of duplexes and fourplexes across Washington State. The Washington State Department of Commerce recently estimated that Washington State would need an additional one million homes constructed over the next twenty years. To try and tackle… Read More

An easement authorizes one to use and/or enter onto real property owned by someone else. In other words, an easement grants the benefited party a non-possessory right over another person’s (the burdened party’s) property. Many people have easements that affect their title, and these easements can limit the free use of their own property by… Read More

In Washington State, several doctrines have emerged to protect the rights of real property owners who have long used areas of land that do not actually sit within the record boundaries of their own property. Classic examples include buildings that developers have built in a fashion that encroaches upon neighboring land, or owners placing a… Read More