Washington State Housing Legislative Updates

Middle housing refers to housing types that are similar in size, shape, and style to single-family houses.

Examples include multiplexes (e.g., duplex, triplex, fourplex, and sixplex), townhouses, stacked flats, courtyard apartments, and cottage houses.

To comply with the HB 1110 state mandates, the City of Renton must make the following updates to its zoning and development regulations:

• Allow middle housing units within all residential zones: A maximum of four housing units per lot allowed unless higher densities are permitted.

• Lots with affordable housing: A maximum of six housing units per lot allowed if at least two of the units are affordable housing unless higher densities allowed.

• Lots near a major transit stop: A maximum of six housing units per lot allowed when within a 1/4 mile walking distance of a "major transit stop" unless higher densities allowed. 

More Information: House Bill 1110 report and state legislation

An ADU refers to a dwelling unit located on the same lot as a single-family housing unit, duplex, triplex, townhome, or other housing unit. They provide the same essential functions as a typical residence, complete with a kitchen, bedroom(s), and bathroom(s).

To comply with the HB 1337 state mandates, the City of Renton must update its municipal code to comply with the following:

• General standards: Cannot impose setback requirements, yard coverage limits, tree retention mandates, restriction on entry door locations, aesthetic requirements, or requirements for design review for ADUs that is more restrictive than those for single-family residences.

• ADU quantity and type: Allow a minimum number of two ADUs per lot and must allow ADUs to be attached, detached or a combination of both.

• ADU size: Allow ADUs to be smaller than 1,000 sq ft.

• Owner occupancy: Does not require onsite owner occupancy.  

More Information: House Bill 1337 report and state legislation

BACKGROUND – HB 1998 CO-LIVING

In 2024, the Washington State Legislature passed House Bill (HB) 1998, now codified in the Revised Code of Washington (RCW) 36.70A.535. The bill requires jurisdictions to allow co-living housing on any lot within an urban growth area where at least six multi-family units are allowed, including lots zoned for mixed-use development. The legislation also establishes standards related to unit size, parking, density, fees, and other development criteria. The City of Renton must amend the Renton Municipal Code to implement these requirements by December 31, 2025.

WHAT IS CO-LIVING HOUSING?

State law defines “co-living housing” as:

“A residential development with sleeping units that are independently rented and lockable and provide living and sleeping space, and residents share kitchen facilities with other sleeping units in the building. Local governments may use other names to refer to co-living housing including, but not limited to, congregate living facilities, single room occupancy, rooming house, boarding house, lodging house, and residential suites.”

IS A CITY OF RENTON BUSINESS LICENSE REQUIRED?

Landlords, including those who own or operate apartment complexes, are not required to have a business license at this time. However, property management companies that manage properties within Renton city limits are required to have a City of Renton Business License. For more information, visit the City of Renton's Business page, as follows: City of Renton Homepage → City Services → Business Resources.

IS A PERMIT REQUIRED?

Yes. All new construction or conversion to co-living housing requires permits. Key steps include:

• Pre-Application Meeting: Meet with Planning, Building, and Renton Fire Authority to review code requirements and submittal needs.
• Building Permit(s): Required for all new structures and for any conversion or change of occupancy to ensure compliance with Building Code and fire/life-safety standards.
• Land Use Permit(s): Required depending on the scope of work. New construction will likely require land use permits. Complete a pre-application meeting for more information.

Applicants can schedule a 15 minute Virtual Meeting to discuss applicable requirements and fees, as follows: City of Renton Homepage → City Services → Permit Services → Schedule Virtual Meeting.

WHERE IS CO-LIVING HOUSING PERMITTED?

As currently proposed, co-living housing would be permitted as follows:

• RC, R-1, R-4, R-6, and R-8 zones: Allowed on lots within a ¼-mile walking distance (“walkshed”) of a Major Transit Stop. This walkshed layer can be viewed on “COR Maps” as follows: Layers → Land Use and Zoning → ADU and Middle Housing Walksheds → Middle Housing ¼ Mile Walkshed
• R-10, R-14, RMF, and RMF-2 zones: Allowed if the lot size and zoning would otherwise allow at least six dwelling units.
• CN, CV, CA, COR, UC-1, and UC-2 zones: Allowed subject to mixed-use standards, commercial requirements, airport proximity restrictions, and other restrictions. Furthermore, attached dwellings, including co-living housing, are not permitted in the CA or CN zone within the Benson, Cedar River, Talbot, or Valley Community Planning Areas.
• CO zone: Allowed subject to mixed-use standards, commercial requirements, structured-parking and transit-proximity criteria, entitlement processes, and other restrictions.

OTHER KEY PROVISIONS OF HB 1998

• Development Standards: Cities may not impose requirements for co-living housing more restrictive than those applied to other multi-family housing in the same zone. Furthermore, cities may not impose mandates on room size, distribution of bedrooms, or habitable space beyond State Building Code.
• Parking:
• • No off-street parking required within 0.5-mile walkshed of a major transit stop. This walkshed layer can be viewed on “COR Maps” as follows: Layers → Land Use and Zoning → ADU and Middle Housing Walksheds → ADU ½ Mile Walkshed
  • Outside the walkshed, up to 0.25 parking space per sleeping unit may be required.
• Density: For density calculations, each sleeping unit counts as 0.25 of a dwelling unit.
• Affordable Housing Incentives: Co-living projects are eligible for all City programs such as the Multi-Family Housing Property Tax Exemption, waived fees, and density bonuses.

RENTAL REGISTRATION PROGRAM

• Nonowner-occupied co-living: Must register with the City’s Rental Registration Program.
• Owner-occupied co-living: Rental Registration Program registration is not required.

For confirmation, contact the Rental Registration Program at rentalregistration@rentonwa.gov. 

HB 1110 and HB 1337 offer increased flexibility based on distance to a major transit stop. The Washington State Legislature established two distinct definitions of a major transit stop; see below for more information for a summary of each and how they apply to middle housing and ADUs.

HB 1110 – Middle Housing

In residential zones Resource Conservation (RC), Residential-1 (R-1), Residential-4 (R-4), Residential-6 (R-6), and Residential-8 (R-8) where middle housing is proposed, up to four dwelling units are allowed per lot. Additionally, up to six dwelling units are allowed per lot on all lots within one-quarter mile walking distance of a major transit stop.

HB 1110 defines a major transit stop as:

• A stop on high-capacity transportation system funded or expanded under the provisions of Chapter 81.104 RCW;
• Commuter rail stops;
• Stops on rail or fixed guideways systems; and
• Stops on bus rapid transit routes, including those under construction.

HB 1337 – ADUs

In residential zones Resource Conservation (RC), Residential-1 (R-1), Residential-4 (R-4), Residential-6 (R-6), Residential-8 (R-8), Residential-10 (R-10), and Residential-14 (R-14) where ADUs are proposed and within a one-half (1/2) mile walking distance of a major transit stop, ADU parking is not required.

HB 1337 defines a major transit stop as:

• A stop on high-capacity transportation system funded or expanded under the provisions of Chapter 81.104 RCW;
• Commuter rail stops;
• Stops on rail or fixed guideways systems, including transitways;
• Stops on bus rapid transit routes or routes that run on high-occupancy vehicle lanes; or
• Stops for a bus or other transit mode providing actual fixed route service at intervals of at least 15-minutes for at least five (5) hours during the peak hours of operations on weekdays.

To help the public understand and take advantage of these incentives, walkshed layers have been created in the city's online mapping software, COR Maps, to help support questions related to ADUs and middle housing. These layers can be found in COR Maps under the Land Use and Zoning group or by visiting the standalone ADU and Middle Housing Walkshed Map. For ease of implementation, all parcels within the walkshed / buffer area, whether fully or partially within the buffer, will be considered within the walkshed. 

After a year of discussion, planning, public engagement, and coordination with Renton's Planning Commission, the Planning and Development Committee directed staff to prepare an ordinance for Council approval. Following approval, staff will update the RMC Title 4 Development Regulations. The new development regulations are scheduled to take effect on June 30th, 2025.  

Staff presented proposed recommendations for new legislative state compliance to Planning Commission on the following dates:

Briefing: March 19, 2025
Public Hearing: April 2, 2025
Deliberations and Recommendation: April 16, 2025

Click here for all meeting agendas and Zoom recordings.

For property specific questions, email the Planning Division at: planningcustomerservice@rentonwa.gov. Please include the property address in the email subject and/or body of the email.

The new residential development regulations are now adopted and in effect, however the code changes are not yet reflected in Renton Municipal Code. It typically takes 3-4 weeks for Code Publishing staff to update and codify the changes. In the meantime, refer to the linked ordinance which shows all code amendments: unless it is a new or relocated code section, new text will be underlined and deleted text is shown with strikethrough.  A clean, unmarked version of the ordinance will be provided soon. Stay tuned!

Please email PlanningCustomerService@rentonwa.gov or call 425-430-7294 with property specific questions.