Recent News

On January 1, 2028, RCW 64.90, known as the Washington Uniform Common Interest Ownership Act or more commonly, “WUCIOA”, will apply to all common interest communities, with a handful of exceptions. In other words, it will apply to most condominium and homeowners’ associations and will effectively repeal the prior statutory schemes: the Homeowners’ Association Act… Read More

Most laypeople understand generally that when you buy something “as-is,” it comes without any warranties.  In its simplest terms, this would mean that if there is anything wrong with the item, the buyer must simply accept it, and has no recourse against the seller for the defect. In the case of real estate sales in… Read More

A modern Washington property record can look deceptively simple. Enter an address or parcel number into a county database, and a map, assessed value, ownership information, and links to recorded documents may appear within seconds. Behind that search result lies a much older system. Washington’s land records combine federal surveys, handwritten field notes, metes-and-bounds descriptions,… Read More

In Washington State, the government can utilize the power of “eminent domain” to take, even forcibly, private property owned by an individual. Indeed, the property owner cannot refuse to “sell” when the government properly exercises its eminent domain powers. There are, of course, parameters around the use of eminent domain to ensure that its exercise… Read More

On April 30th, the Washington Supreme Court ruled in Vargas v. RRA CP Opportunity Trust 1, et al. that beneficiaries seeking to enforce collection on a Home Equity Line of Credit (“HELOC”) cannot do so by way of the Deed of Trust Act (RCW 61.24 et. seq). In other words, creditors trying to collect on a HELOC debt… Read More

On January 1, 2028, RCW 64.90, known as the Washington Uniform Common Interest Ownership Act or more commonly, “WUCIOA”, will apply to all common interest communities, with a handful of exceptions. In other words, it will apply to most condominium and homeowners’ associations and will effectively repeal the prior statutory schemes: the Homeowners’ Association Act… Read More

Past webinars and blog posts have addressed several principles of insurance law in Washington, including: (a) the duty to defend is broader than the duty to indemnify; and (b) an insurer must deal fairly with its insured, giving equal consideration in all matters to the insured’s interests. Title insurance, however, is unique. Differing from other… Read More

As professional developers and ambitious property owners seek ways to profit from real estate, they will often look at options to convert lots with a single home into real estate that allows for the sale of multiple homes or multi-family developments. In other words, they try to create “more bang for their buck”, so to… Read More

When buying or selling real estate or structuring corporate asset transactions in Washington, tax considerations are rarely far from mind. One of the most significant state level costs in any transfer is the Real Estate Excise Tax (“REET”). Under RCW 82.45.060, Washington uses a graduated rate structure for state REET. Rather than a flat percentage… Read More