It’s no surprise that 2023 was labeled “The Year of Housing"...between escalating mortgage rates, lack of inventory and increasingly tight mortgage lending standards, getting people into homes—and, existing homeowners’ properties sold—consumed a lot of resources and attention. Washington REALTORS® successfully introduced bills to increase housing density/supply and also expedite homebuilding.
The focus for the 2024 Legislative Session will be an extension of the work we carried forward from 2023, using the momentum gained to further pro-housing legislation and protect against legislation that would harm the real estate transaction. View WR's Legislative Priorities below for more details...
2024 WR Legislative Priorities
Updated 1/15/24
Allow Administrative Lot Splitting to Create New Buildable Lots
REALTORS® support legislation through which a homeowner can create an additional residential buildable lot through an administrative lot split. This determination would be made by cities through an administrative process similar to lot line adjustments, so that cities can ensure that the new residential lot meets various requirements such as lot size, availability of utilities, legal access and easements, and compliance with critical areas, wetlands, and other environmental constraints. In the 2023 Legislature, HB 1245 passed the House 94-2, the House again passed HB 1245 to the Senate to start the 2024 Session.
Allow Detached Accessory Dwelling Units in Rural Areas
While King County allows Detached Accessory Dwelling Units outside of Urban Growth Areas, Growth Board decisions have prevented other counties from allowing this same type of housing. The result is that while attached units can be built in rural areas, detached ADUs cannot be legally built. The result is an increase in illegally converted garages, barns, or sheds – and a clear inequity in housing supply for rural areas of Washington State. Detached ADUs are less expensive, smaller, and easier to build – our State’s largest and wealthiest county allows them – but other counties cannot. The Legislature should correct this unfairness by allowing (but limiting) Detached ADUs, or by giving all counties the option of implementing King County’s Detached ADU ordinance.
Increase Housing Supply Through Transit-Oriented Development
Washington State will be investing billions of dollars in rail and bus transit, and these areas must include significant new housing supply and neighborhood commercial services. Cities with major transit centers should not impose development regulations or other requirements that prevent transit-oriented housing supply. Housing affordability should be addressed through locally-developed programs that reflect market conditions, with state funding support, and by using successful incentive programs like the Multi-Family Tax Exemption (MFTE). Cities deserve state financial support for local TOD planning and infrastructure needs, to ensure that TOD areas have a mix of residential and commercial development, while also providing community services and amenities.
The Housing & Real Estate Market is Fragile – Do No Harm
Current economic conditions result in a struggling real estate market for residential single and multifamily, and commercial real estate. Washington State is experiencing declining investments in new single and multifamily housing construction, cancellation or delay of numerous development projects, and a reduction in new building permits. Our real estate markets compete against other regions to attract investments in housing and real estate – state and local tax and regulatory actions must not harm an already fragile real estate market or disincentivize investment in future supply.
You may have seen our television ads and wonder, "What was 'Welcome Home' all about?" Welcome Home is a comprehensive plan to provide additional types of housing and ramp up incentives for local jurisdictions to provide more and diverse housing types...such as duplexes, triplexes, and cottage housing. Under Welcome Home, a series of legislative initiatives have been designed to allow more housing for our communities.
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