Hi. I mail rent to the landlord ASAP via certified mail because there is no local agent and it's less expensive than ordering bank records. On the day of, I email him the tracking number. The USPS always takes 2 or 3 business days, so the 1st delivery is on or before the 5th of the month, 90% of time. He usually he waits until after the 5th to accept delivery. Can he charge late fees in these situations? A long time after the fact? The lease says `mail can take up to seven days to get from Seattle to landlord,' which is rare to happen. Have I agreed to slow mail receipt? He's decided to not charge late fees before, and said so in writing. But since I learned there are legal problems with the house, and told him, and he doesn't want to fix.. Is this common problem with cert. mail?
Matthew Robert KaminskiDivorce / Separation LawyerSeattle, WA ·
Long story short: Pay earlier and avoid this problem.
I'm going to try to parse out your question into parts:
Out of state: Landlord can be out of state, but Washington law RCW 59.18.060(15) requires that the landlord name an agent within the county that the property is located who can accept rent.
Mail times: I'd have to review your lease but if it allows for longer delivery times to account for mailing rent out of the state then the landlord is bound by what he put in his lease. Generally a lease will say that the rent must be "received" by the fifth day. So regardless of when you mailed it, it matters when it gets to the landlord. Now if you have tracking numbers to show that delivery attempts were made and refused by the landlord, you have something to argue. If the landlord is going to tell you he is enforcing the late fees provision then he needs to make himself available to receive the rent on the fifth.
If you are having an issue with your landlord you should speak to an attorney, most will give you a free consult. Just gather together your lease, landlord emails / letters, pictures of the problems in the house and give one a call. Be sure to notify your landlord in writing about any problems you have with the rental, and keep a copy for your records.
If that still doesn't work for you, go see the Housing Justice Project who will provide free legal help if you meet certain income requirements.
Good Luck,
Matt
I agree with the previous answers and you should talk with the landlord and set up a better system, and have the landlord hire a local agent.
Good Luck
Both you and the landlord do not appear to be doing things the legal way.
Your rent likely is due on the 1st of each month. If your rent is not delivered to the landlord by the due date, the landlord can charge you late fees if you have a written agreement with the landlord for late fees. Whether there is a written agreement, the landlord can serve you with a pay or vacate notice when rent is not paid when due.
You should review your written agreement with the landlord to find out when rent is due and whether late fees can be charged.
The WA Residential Landlord-Tenant Act requires an out of state landlord to have an in state agent to accept service and rent.
If there are "legal problems with the house", you should give written notice to the landlord as required by the RLTA. If the landlord does not fix the problems, you can get the city's inspectors to come and inspect. If the inspector find codes violation, the landlord will be fined. If the violations are serious, the landlord may have to pay you money.
You should review the specific facts with your attorney to find out your legal options.
There was a recent unpublished case regarding when a notice is deemed received when it is sent via certified mail. In the facts of the case, the landlord received several notifications of of a certified mailing, yet refused to pick it up. The court stated that the owner was put on notice on the date of the first delivery.
As the other posters have mentioned, rent is ussually due on the first, which means the landlord should have received the rent by that time (first attept of delivery). You may want to consider sending the rent earlier to ensure it is received timely.
