No Notary, No Problem: Washington Simplifies Lease Requirements

In 2024, Washington quietly made a significant change to its real estate laws that benefits both landlords and tenants: leases longer than one year no longer need to be notarized to be legally enforceable. The change removes a long‑standing technical requirement that often caused confusion, and sometimes unfair outcomes, without providing much real protection.

Here’s what changed, why lawmakers did it, and what it means for you.

What Changed in 2024

Effective June 6, 2024, Washington enacted Substitute Senate Bill 5840 (SSB 5840), which amended several real estate statutes to clarify that:

• Leases do not require notarization, witnesses, or seals to be valid, regardless of length.
• But notarization is still required if a lease (or memorandum of lease) is recorded with the county.

The Residential Landlord‑Tenant Act (RLTA) remains unchanged and unaffected.

Previously, leases longer than one year that were not notarized could be treated as unenforceable beyond a month‑to‑month tenancy, even if both parties clearly intended to be bound by a longer term. The new law eliminates that trap.

Why the Legislature Changed the Law

Legislators and legal experts identified several practical problems with the old notarization requirement:

        1. Washington was an outlier.

Most states do not require commercial or residential leases over one year to be notarized. Washington’s rule was unusually strict and out of step with modern practice.

        2. Notarization created unnecessary risk.

A lease could be carefully negotiated, signed, and performed and yet later challenged simply because it wasn’t notarized. In some cases, parties used this technical defect to escape otherwise valid obligations.

       3. Modern transactions don’t fit old formalities.

Leases are often signed electronically, with parties in different cities or states. Requiring notarization added cost and delay without improving fairness or clarity.

What This Means for Landlords

For landlords, the change offers greater certainty and fewer technical pitfalls:

• A properly written and signed lease over one year is now enforceable even if it was never notarized.
• The risk of a tenant arguing that a long‑term lease converted into a month‑to‑month tenancy due solely to lack of notarization is largely eliminated.
• Notarization remains necessary only if you plan to record the lease (which is relatively uncommon outside of long‑term commercial arrangements).

What This Means for Tenants

Tenants benefit from clearer expectations and stronger protections:

• You can rely on the lease you signed without worrying about whether a missing notary stamp undermines its validity.
• Long‑term lease rights are less vulnerable to technical challenges.
• As before, residential leases remain governed by the RLTA, including its writing and disclosure requirements.

A Final Word on Enforceability

While lack of notarization is no longer a reason a lease fails, there may still be other grounds that affect enforceability such as fraud, lack of capacity, unconscionability, or failure to meet other statutory requirements. But notarization alone is no longer an issue.

Bottom Line

The change modernizes Washington lease law by removing an outdated formality that caused real‑world problems. For most landlords and tenants, it means simpler transactions, fewer surprises, and leases that better reflect the parties’ actual agreement.

If you have questions about a specific lease or whether recording makes sense in your situation, please seek your own legal counsel to get legal advice.