# Washington HOA Assessment Increases: No Cap, One Vote (2026)

> Under Washington Revised Code 64.90.525, part of the Uniform Common Interest Ownership Act, and the older HOA Act provision at 64.38.025, the board has to give owners a copy of any proposed budget within 30 days of adopting it and set a ratification meeting 14 to 50 days later. The budget is ratified unless owners holding a majority of all the votes in the association reject it, whether or not a quorum is present. A special assessment follows the same ratification process. If owners reject the budget, the last ratified budget continues until the board proposes one that is not rejected. The important point for a buyer: Washington sets no statutory cap on how much annual assessments can increase, so the budget history and the reserves are where the real risk shows up.

_Source: https://hoanotes.com/hoa/washington/budget-and-assessments/ | Last reviewed 2026-06-03_

## How budget ratification works

The default runs in the board's favor, but with a real owner check. The board sends the proposed budget within 30 days and holds a ratification meeting 14 to 50 days later. The budget passes unless owners holding a majority of all the votes vote to reject it, and because that majority is measured against the whole association rather than just those present, rejecting a budget takes an organized effort.

A special assessment is not a board-only move either. It has to go through the same ratification process, so owners get the same chance to reject it. If a budget is rejected, the last ratified budget continues until the board brings back one that survives the vote.

## There is no cap on increases

Washington does not cap annual assessment increases. Any limit lives in the governing documents, not the statute, so a board with thin reserves and aging shared systems can raise dues sharply or propose a special assessment without a state-law ceiling in the way.

That makes the budget history and the reserves the real story for a buyer. A community that is underfunded against its obligations is signaling a future increase or special assessment, and the ratification vote rarely stops one.

## What to check in the disclosure packet

Read these together before you make an offer:

- The last few years of budgets to see how fast dues have climbed.
- The reserve balance against upcoming big-ticket repairs.
- Any special assessment that has been approved, proposed, or discussed.
- Board minutes for talk of a shortfall, a loan, or a large planned project.

## Why this matters to your offer

Your dues can rise without a statutory ceiling, so the protection that matters is reading the budget and the reserves before you buy. The ratification vote rarely blocks an increase, which puts the homework on the buyer.

An HOA Notes brief reads the budgets, the reserves, and the minutes together, flags a community heading toward a steep increase or a special assessment, and cites the page behind each finding.

## What the statute says

**Washington Revised Code 64.38.025 and 64.90.525** (Budget ratification by owners). After the board adopts a proposed annual budget, it must distribute a summary to all owners and hold or give notice of an opportunity for owners to ratify or reject the budget; owners may reject a proposed budget by a majority of votes entitled to be cast at a meeting at which a quorum is present; Washington has NO statutory percentage cap on annual assessment increases -- any cap is found only in the governing documents. The association may adopt any budget amount the board determines necessary; if owners reject the budget, the board may propose a revised budget or the prior year's budget may continue in effect as provided in the governing documents.

## Washington HOA assessment increases: common questions

### Is there a cap on HOA dues increases in Washington?

No. Washington sets no statutory cap on annual assessment increases. Any cap exists only in the governing documents.

### Can owners stop a Washington HOA dues increase?

Only by rejecting the budget. Owners holding a majority of all the votes in the association must vote to reject it at the ratification meeting.

### Does a special assessment need an owner vote?

Yes. A special assessment follows the same ratification process as the budget, so owners can reject it.

### What happens if owners reject the budget?

The last ratified budget continues until the board proposes a budget that is not rejected.

## Sources (verified 2026-06-03)

1. Revised Code of Washington 64.90.525 (budgets; assessments; special assessments), Washington State Legislature. Verified 2026-06-03. https://app.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=64.90.525
2. Revised Code of Washington 64.90.525, Justia. Verified 2026-06-03. https://law.justia.com/codes/washington/title-64/chapter-64-90/section-64-90-525/
3. Washington HOA laws: RCW 64.38, WUCIOA, and the 2028 transition, EffortlessHOA. Verified 2026-06-03. https://effortlesshoa.com/blog/hoa-laws-washington

HOA Notes is not a law firm and this is not legal advice.