Olympia, WA Rental Property Rules: Rental Registration (2026)

Olympia's Rental Housing Code, Chapter 5.82 of the Olympia Municipal Code, requires registration of rental units in the City of Olympia, Thurston County, Washington. Under 5.82.070(A), any person who makes available for rent, or rents, a non-exempt rental unit must register the unit with the City before making it available or renting it, and must keep the registration in place throughout the rental. A registration is good for one calendar year and expires on December 31st of the year of registration or renewal. It transfers to a new owner of the unit for the unexpired portion of the one-year term.

Subsection B exempts seven kinds of units: a unit inside an owner-occupied single-family dwelling where the tenant shares the dwelling with the owner; a unit occupied by an owner's immediate family member, which needs a City declaration form and can lose the exemption if the tenant submits a complaint about code violations or conditions that endanger or impair health or safety; a unit not available for rent; an owner-occupied mobile or manufactured home; a living arrangement exempted under RCW 59.18.040; a transient dwelling, including a short-term rental, as defined in OMC 18.02.180; and an assisted living dwelling, except Permanent Supportive Housing.

The landlord follows the City's process and form, pays the registration fee, submits a declaration of compliance and provides a mailing address. Under subsection G the fee is $35 per rental housing unit each year, and an affordable housing provider can request a fee exemption that the City grants at its discretion. Renewal is due on or before the expiration date, with updated information. City notices mailed to the registered address are deemed received three days after mailing. At each new lease or renewal, the landlord gives the tenant the City's tenant rights information document, and posts information about the City's rental housing and safety inspection program at each registered unit or in a common area.

Registration sits beside two other duties in the same chapter: a business license under 5.82.080, where one license covers all of a person's rental units in the City, and the periodic inspection program under 5.82.090.