Restrictive covenants

Research by the University of Washington's Seattle Civil Rights and Labor History Project uncovered more than 500 deeds and covenants containing racial, religious, or other discriminatory restrictions that apply to at least 20,000 properties.

• HB 1335, passed by the state Legislature in 2021, funds research for the University of Washington and Eastern Washington University to identify restrictive covenants on private property and inform property owners. See the UW's interactive map showing some of the subdivisions known to have deed provisions or restrictive covenants. This map is not exhaustive.
• Do your own research. One option is to search the land title records maintained by the King County Recorder's Office and King County Archives. These records are public, so you can search them for free. This can be a complex process and fees are charged for copies.
• You can also review your owner's title insurance policy, which is typically issued at the same time the property is purchased. A title insurance policy identifies documents appearing in the public records that affect title to the property. Your policy may reference deeds recorded decades ago, or covenant documents affecting an entire subdivision. You may be able to request copies from the title company that issued your title policy, although a fee may be charged. You may also use the recording information in your title policy to get copies from the Recorder's Office.

No. In 1948, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that restrictive covenants could not be enforced. In 1968, the federal Fair Housing Act banned covenants discriminating on the basis of race, color, religion, or national origin. In 1969, the Washington Law Against Discrimination (WLAD) included all protected classes and makes such covenants void or illegal. That law says that it is an unfair practice to attempt to honor a restrictive covenant in the chain of title. The chain of title includes all the recorded documents that affect title to a property, back to the original conveyance by the United States.

The modification document will refer to the original recorded document that contained the restrictive covenant and contain the following statement required by law:

The referenced original written instrument contains discriminatory provisions that are void and unenforceable under state law and federal law. This document strikes from the referenced original instrument all provisions that are void and unenforceable under law.

Recording a modification document will provide notice in the land title records that the restrictive covenant is void and unenforceable. It will not delete the historic record. The modification document legally strikes, but does not physically erase, the void and illegal discriminatory provisions from the original document.

Through legal action and filing new paperwork with the Recorder’s Office, removing a restrictive covenant strikes the void provisions from the public records and eliminates the void provisions from the title. King County Archives will maintain the restrictive covenants for historical purposes, but the new process allows property owners to separate historic records from their future property transactions.

There is no obligation to modify or remove it.

If anyone follows the judicial process for removing the language from a covenant, it will be effective on all properties associated with that document. King County Archives will maintain the original documents for historical purposes, but the new process allows property owners to separate historic records from their future property transactions.

No. Restrictive covenants have been void in Washington since 1969. The attempt by any person to enforce such a covenant against your property would be a violation of state and federal law. Your rights are protected by existing law and do not require that you remove the restrictive covenant.

Property owners have three choices if their property has an unlawful, restrictive covenant associated with it. As of January 1, 2022, real estate transactions in Washington State require disclosure of restrictive covenants. You can file a Restrictive Covenant Modification, have them removed, or do nothing to change the property record.

• File a Restrictive Covenant Modification. Filing this document through King County Records and Licensing costs nothing. It effectively removes reference to the offending document from your chain of title.
• Have the covenant removed. Washington state law allows for the illegal language to be struck by bringing an action in Superior Court. Filing through Superior Court costs $20. Property owners will then need to provide the new records to the King County Recorder's Office for filing at no charge.
• Do nothing to modify or remove the covenant.

The specific steps are shown above. If a property owner wants the covenant removed, they go to Superior Court (paying the nominal court fee) in the county in which the property is located. Superior Court may issue a declaratory judgment action - entering an order striking the void provisions from the public records and eliminating the void provisions from the title. The property owner bringing the action may obtain and deliver a certified copy of the order to the Recorder's Office, who will record the document for no fee.

No, but the law is specific about disclosure during property transactions.