RCW 59.24.030 Contracts required—Terms.

(1) A three-party contract shall be required of persons participating in the rental deposit guarantee program. The parties to the contract shall be the local government or nonprofit corporation operating a shelter for homeless persons or transitional housing, the tenant, and the rental property owner. The terms of the contract shall include, but are not limited to, all of the following:

(a) The owner of the rental property shall agree to allow the security deposit to be paid by the tenant over a specified number of months as an addition to the regular rental payment, rather than as a lump sum payment.

(b) Upon execution of the agreement, the local government or nonprofit corporation shall encumber or reserve funds in a special fund created under RCW 59.24.020, as a guarantee of the contract, an amount no less than eighty percent of the outstanding balance of the security deposit owed by the tenant to the landlord.

(c) The tenant shall agree to a payment schedule of a specified number of months in which time the total amount of the required deposit shall be paid to the property owner.

(d) At any time during the operation of the guarantee, the property owner shall make all claims first against amounts of the security deposit actually paid by the tenant and secondly against the guarantee. At no time during or after the tenancy may the property owner make claims against the guarantee in excess of that amount agreed to as the guarantee.

(e) If a deduction from the guarantee fund is required, it may be accomplished only to the extent permitted by the contract and in the manner provided by law, including notice to the legal agency or organization. The tenant shall have no direct use of guarantee funds, including funds which may be referred to as "last month's rent."

(2) The department shall make available to local governments and nonprofit corporations receiving grants under this chapter the forms deemed necessary for the contracts and the determination of eligibility. Local governments and nonprofit corporations may develop and use their own forms as long as the forms meet the requirements specified in this chapter.

[ 1988 c 237 § 3.]