Washington LawHelp

Yes, if you rent the place where you live and you just got a 3-Day Notice to Quit from your landlord.

No, if you own the mobile home you live in, and you rent the lot. Read My Landlord Just Threatened to Evict Me from my Manufactured/Mobile Home Park instead and talk to a lawyer right away. Contact information is below.

• What this notice is
• What to do if you get this notice from your landlord
• Where to get legal help

It is a written demand from your landlord. A landlord can give you this type of notice for “creating a waste or nuisance.” A landlord will give you this notice if the landlord believes you are:

• Severely damaging or destroying the property, or allowing someone else to do this
• Committing crimes on the property
• Engaging in gang-related activity
• Interfering substantially and repeatedly with other tenants’ use of the property

It is an unreasonable intrusion on someone else’s ability to use and enjoy the property. It could be a physical intrusion or something else that causes harm to the landlord or other person.

Your landlord should not send you a 3-Day Notice to Quit based on nuisance if you have broken a term of the lease that you can fix, such as no pets or no smoking. Breaking a rule on the lease is rarely a nuisance.

This word also has a different legal meaning from its everyday use. A landlord can only evict a tenant because of “waste” if they have proof that the tenant significantly damaged the property. If the landlord says you damaged the property, they must also prove this damage has harmed the landlord.

Everyday or routine property damage, or damage from normal wear and tear, is not “waste.”

No. A nuisance must be unreasonable. This type of noise complaint is part of ordinary life. It would not seriously harm or injure someone else. It is not a nuisance. A situation must have the potential to put someone else’s safety or health at risk to be considered a nuisance. 

Yes. Your landlord (or their employee or another adult) can “personally serve” you at home by handing you the notice. The landlord can also hand it to another adult or older teenager living with you. The landlord also can tape it on your door, but then they must also mail a copy to you.

A 3-Day Notice that is sent by text, voicemail, email, or in person is not a proper notice. It does not start the eviction process.

No. Washington law does not let landlords evict tenants without following the proper court eviction process. The landlord must give you a proper written “termination” notice before starting an eviction lawsuit. The 3-Day Notice to Quit is one type of termination notice.

If you are still living in the place after 3 days, your landlord can start an eviction lawsuit against you. The landlord does this by giving you official court papers called a “Summons” and “Complaint.” These papers may require you to send a response to your landlord or their lawyer. The landlord needs to have these documents delivered to you if your landlord wants to have the case heard in court. Your landlord must win an eviction lawsuit against you and get a judge to sign an order directing the sheriff to evict you. Only the sheriff can formally evict you or change the locks on the rental.

Talk to a lawyer right away. If you want to fight the eviction case, you will need to have evidence proving what you are saying is true. Having witnesses who have personal knowledge about the facts testify for your case is very helpful.

Visit Northwest Justice Project to find out how to get legal help.