My landlord just gave me a 60-Day Notice

Yes, if you rent the place where you live and you just got a 60-Day Notice to Terminate your tenancy (or a 60-Day Notice to Vacate).

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

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

It is a notice from your landlord that you may need to move out within 60 days. Here is when your landlord can give you this type of notice:

• Your landlord has a "business or economic reason" to no longer rent the place. Your landlord may have to prove in court that this reason is a "good" one.
• You have gotten 4 or more written "10-Day Comply or Vacate" notices in the last 12 months for breaking important terms of the rental agreement. The notices all must be about different incidents.

• You must register as a "sex offender" during the tenancy or you did not share that you are registered as a sex offender on your rental application.
• You are in your first written rental agreement for a 6 to 12 month term, and your landlord doesn't want to renew the agreement once it's up. Your landlord can give you a 60-day written notice before the agreement is up.
• You've had a written rental agreement for 6 to 12 month terms one after the other, and you have never been a month-to-month tenant. Your landlord must give you a 60-day written notice if your landlord doesn't want to renew the agreement again.

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. If your landlord does this "substitute service," your landlord must also send a copy of the notice to you.

If the landlord tries but fails to have you personally served, the landlord can then "serve" the notices by taping them on your door, but then they must also mail a copy to you.

No. A 10-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.

Your landlord must give you a proper written "termination" notice before starting an eviction lawsuit. The 60-Day Notice is one type of termination notice.

If you are still living in the place after 60 days, your landlord may 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.

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.

I got a 60-day Notice to Vacate. My landlord put in the notice that I broke the terms of my lease 4 times. I did get my fourth 10-day Notice to Comply this year. If I stop doing what they say (comply), do I have to leave?

It depends. Your landlord must prove that each of the 4 notices followed the law, including:

• Each notice must clearly state what you did that breached your lease agreement.
• Each notice must be based on all separate incidents - different dates and times.
• Each notice must have been based on claims that you broke an important term of your lease.
• Each notice must tell you that your landlord can end your tenancy if you get four 10-day Notices to Comply within the last year.
• Each notice must tell you that even if you comply with the fourth notice, your landlord will still end your tenancy if you get four 10-day notices in comply within the last year.

All 4 notices must be attached to the 60-day notice you get.

If you get one of these 60-day notices, it may not be enough that you do what is asked of you in the last 10-day Notice you got. If you get one of these notices, talk to a lawyer right away.

I got a 60-Day Notice. My landlord put in the notice that they have a business reason for wanting me to move. But I saw this place posted online! My landlord is just going to rent the place out to someone else when I'm gone.

If you want to fight the eviction court case, talk to a lawyer right away. You will need to be able to prove your case in court. This means giving the court evidence proving your landlord did not have a business reason for ending your tenancy with a 60-Day Notice. It can also mean having witnesses with personal knowledge about the facts testify.

A lawyer can help you with these things. See contact information below.

I got a 60-Day Notice. My landlord put in the notice that I didn't tell them I had to register as a sex offender. But I did tell them when I applied.

You should also talk to a lawyer right away if this happens. You will need to be able to prove that you did tell your landlord about your registration as a "sex offender" when applying. This means giving the court evidence proving that your landlord knew about it but still rented to you. It can also mean having witnesses with personal knowledge about the facts testify.

A lawyer can help you with these things. See contact information below.

* Read Getting Ready for a Court Hearing or Trial to get an idea of what you will need to do to fight the eviction in court.