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Homeowner forced to spend winter living in van while courts fumble property rights protections
OLYMPIA… Jason Roth, a Seattle homeowner, is being forced to live in his van while a tenant continues to live in his home rent free. The ongoing case is not scheduled to be heard until March 2024 and highlights the problems in King County over eviction resolution and rights of property owners.
While the City of Seattle has imposed a moratorium on winter evictions, homeowners are being forced to pay for housing for tenants that simply refuse to pay, which violates contractual obligations. In a bizarre turn of events, the tenant has been renting space in the home on Airbnb for nearly $500 per night, garnering an estimated income of $2-4,000 per month until a state lawmaker stepped in and Airbnb removed the listing.
The Washington Business Properties Association is calling on local officials to step in with a list of three key demands:
- That King County Courts follow the law and prioritize unlawful detainer suits over all other civil actions;
- That the King County Sheriff assigns enough deputies to timely execute writs; and
- That the Legislature investigate abuses of the judicial system by taxpayer-funded attorneys.
The WBPA believes that King County Courts are purposefully slow-rolling unlawful detainer actions, denying access to justice for homeowners like Roth.
“Every other county in Washington state is following the law and getting these cases resolved in a timely manner,” said William Shadbolt, Managing Director of the WBPA. “Why is King County refusing to do so? The Roth case is egregious and underscores a serious imbalance between squatters and those who legally are entitled to protect their property. People know that this is simply wrong.”
Under RCW 59.18.370 the court must hear unlawful detainer show cause hearings within 30 days. Under RCW 59.12.140 cases shall take precedence over all other civil actions. However, the King County courts are an outlier in the state with lengthy delays by court administrators and activist attorneys who are being funded by taxpayers.
“We are seeing some very underhanded tactics being employed to delay justice for homeowners and housing providers by attorneys whose costs are being paid by the public. Taxpayers deserve better. Jason Roth deserves better; he and others in this ridiculous situation deserve justice.”
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