Washington set the 2026 rent cap at 9.68 percent. What it means if you own a rental.
By Mina Mina · Real Broker, LLC
Washington now limits how much you can raise the rent each year on most units. For 2026 that cap works out to 9.683 percent. If you own a rental, or you are thinking about buying one, this is worth understanding before you run your numbers.
The basics
The law caps annual increases at the lower of a set formula or ten percent, which produced the 9.683 percent figure for this year. There are also rules around notice periods and no increases during the first year of a tenancy. The point is simple. You can still raise rents, but the days of large surprise jumps are over.
How this changes underwriting
As an investor, I would rather know the rules than guess. A predictable cap means you should buy based on today's rent and realistic growth, not on an aggressive raise you may not be allowed to make. It rewards buying right, managing well, and holding for the long run, which is how I think investors should operate anyway.
If you want to pressure test a Snohomish or King County rental with these rules baked in, run it through my investor calculator and then let us talk it through.