Washington landlords who adjusted their notice procedures last year to comply with a new certified mail requirement can change them again. Effective June 11, 2026, HB 2664 repeals the certified mail requirement and restores ordinary mail for unlawful detainer notices and other notices under the Residential Landlord Tenant Act, ch. 59.18 RCW.
How We Got Here
RCW 59.12.040 sets forth how notices can be served in forcible entry, forcible detainer, and unlawful detainer actions, including pre-eviction notices. In 2025, the legislature amended the statute to require certified mail when a landlord did not personally deliver a notice. That requirement created headaches for tenants, because tenants had to sign for the notices when they were delivered via mail or pick the notices up at the post office. It also sharply increased costs for landlords and property managers.
What HB2664 Changes
As revised, the statute no longer includes the certified mail requirement. This means a landlord now completes service by mail by depositing the properly addressed and prepaid notice in regular first class mail within Washington. The statute does not require a certified mail receipt or proof of actual delivery or pickup. This change applies not only to pre-eviction notices, but also to every other notice that RCW 59.12.040 governs, including rent increase notices and notices of default under a court-ordered repayment plan.
What This Means in Practice
Landlords and property managers can return to the mailing procedures they used before last year’s amendment and avoid the administrative burden and cost of certified mail. As a best practice, we still recommend landlords document the mailing date and keep proof of mailing, even though the statute no longer requires certified mail.
Landlords who updated lease templates, notice forms, or property management software to reflect the certified mail requirement should reverse those changes now. Those forms may cause landlords to incur unnecessary certified-mail costs.