Is There a Maximum Late Fee in Washington?

The laws in Washington don’t mention late fees at all. As a result, there’s no official limit on how much your landlord can charge if you pay your rent behind schedule. There is a general state law that says tenants are only required to follow rules that are considered “reasonable,” however—so if your landlord is trying to charge you an incredibly high late fee, you might be able to convince a judge that it’s unreasonable and get out of paying it. (It would have to be pretty egregious to make it worth suing your landlord, though.)

But none of this matters if your lease doesn’t explicitly mention a late fee. Your landlord can only charge a fee for late rent if it’s spelled out in a written lease agreement that was signed by both of you. Otherwise, it’s illegal under Washington State law.

One last thing: when you search online for laws about late fees in Washington, there's a good chance you'll stumble across RCW 19.150.150. This law notes that a "late fee of twenty dollars or twenty percent of the monthly rental amount, whichever is greater, for each late rental payment shall be deemed reasonable." But don't be fooled! This section of the law doesn't apply to residential rentals—it only applies to late rent fees for storage units.

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