Creating a lease for a my first househack in Puyallup, WA

[James Jordan]

I am moving into my first househack to begin renovations very soon. I need some help identifying which tool I should use in order to cover myself. I want the ability to edit the form in case I want to add anything specific but I want to make sure my lease is 100% legal. Which tool do y'all suggest I use to build this lease? I have found several tools for building leases but I just don't know how much I need to be paying for this service. A couple examples of different tools I have seen include RHAWA (high compliance), Rocket Lawyer, Zillow Rental Manager, Bigger Pockets lease forms, and a few others. Any opinions on this?

[Alex Rivera]

Seconding the WA-specific concern. I self-manage a duplex and a 4-plex in Tacoma and I've stuck with RHAWA forms the whole time. Membership is ~$100/yr but every form is state-specific and they update them when the legislature changes something — which happens more than you'd expect lately. Just-cause eviction statewide came in 2021, the rent increase notice rules (60 days for anything over 3%) are newer, and the lead/mold/flood disclosure requirements have been tightened.

Rocket Lawyer and Zillow aren't bad starting points for other states but I wouldn't trust either as fully current for WA — generic templates tend to lag. RHAWA's forms actually cite the RCW sections, which for me is usually the tell for whether a template is being kept up to date.

Few things your lease should cover regardless of which tool you land on:

- RCW 59.18 just-cause termination language (month-to-month at-will isn't a thing here anymore)

- Security deposit itemization + the statement-of-condition requirement at move-in

- Lead-based paint disclosure if the property is pre-1978

- 60-day notice for rent increases over 3%

For a househack specifically I'd err on the side of the more-compliant option — you're sharing the property, and compliance mistakes are harder to clean up after move-in than before.