“Wrongful eviction is not a minor matter. It’s a major injustice, and now landlords and their insurers know it can cost them dearly.” WA landlord to pay $725k, believed to be largest settlement for alleged wrongful eviction in state history. www.seattletimes.com/business/rea...

WA landlord to pay $725k after wrongful eviction

Tenant advocates hope the high price tag will discourage landlords from swift evictions that could be legally dubious.

seattletimes.com

NEW: Talks to slash Seattle’s MHA fees to spur market-rate development appear to have broken down after opposition from some affordable housing advocates.

"the property is cursed" is such a perfect EIS comment

"Losing experienced, dedicated journalists because one of the West Coast’s largest newspapers fails to pay a fair wage is a loss for communities across the Northwest." www.thestand.org/2026/06/seat...

Seattle Times Union files ULP over bad-faith bargaining

Newsroom workers “are ready and eager to meet when the company is ready to talk about wages,” per the union SEATTLE, WA (June 16, 2026) — Months into bargaining a new contract with no management count...

thestand.org

More than 10,000 people applied for Seattle's social housing lottery after the social housing developer bought its first building. www.seattletimes.com/business/rea...

Why more than 10K people want to rent in this Seattle building

Seattle’s first social housing building has just 150 apartments. The number of applicants to move in is a sign of the city’s need for affordable housing.

seattletimes.com

Wherefore art thou Seattle housing director? www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news...

Seattle still lacks a housing czar as affordable housing sector struggles

Three weeks into her term, the mayor asked Seattle’s head of housing to resign. Four months later, she’s yet to announce her pick for a permanent replacement.

seattletimes.com

hello, i have returned to the socialist hellhole (katie wilson wants to fix the 8). back once again on the housing and real estate beat and always in search of tips!!! reach me here or hgroover@seattletimes.com or on signal at heidigroover.75

WA tenants facing eviction are supposed to have the right to an attorney. Instead, this is what many cases in King County look like as legal aid groups struggle to keep up with a soaring number of evictions. www.seattletimes.com/business/rea...

Extremely cool opportunity: The Seattle Times is hiring a DC correspondent. Rare these days for a local paper. seattletimes.applytojob.com/apply/oVo010...

D.C. Correspondent - The Seattle Times - Career Page

We’re seeking a a D.C.-based correspondent to uncover how federal power touches lives in the Pacific Northwest!

seattletimes.applytojob.com

Wilson, who has been in elected office for a decade and is a candidate for King County executive, was booked into the King County Correctional Facility Wednesday, according to records.

King County Assessor John Wilson arrested in stalking investigation

Wilson, who has been in elected office for a decade and is a candidate for King County executive, was booked into the King County Correctional Facility Wednesday, according to records.

seattletimes.com

Comprehensive look at what Seattle residents can expect from recent upzoning when the construction market is this slow, via @heidigroover.bsky.social www.seattletimes.com/business/rea...

The huge change in Seattle housing you may not even notice

Monday brings new zoning rules in the city, but other factors mean you may not see much new development right away.

seattletimes.com

Looking for a temporary journalism gig in Seattle? We're hiring a housing/real estate reporter to fill in while I'm at a fellowship, roughly August-May. Details here and my DMs are open! seattletimes.applytojob.com/apply/rPnhnC...

Business Reporter, Real Estate (Temporary) - The Seattle Times - Career Page

We are seeking a driven reporter to temporarily cover real estate business reporting!

seattletimes.applytojob.com

As of now it would: Repeal the city's roommate ordinance and restrict the winter eviction moratorium to people who had an unexpected loss of income. Moore wanted a roll back of the city's law mandating landlord offer new leases to current tenants, but the Housing Consortium opposed.

Though Cathy Moore is leaving, the long-discussed landlord-tenant legislation she was drafting might still be on the table. In fact, the bill had already shifted away from her and toward CM Solomon -- who is no longer a landlord -- and the mayor's office. www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news...

Changes to Seattle’s renter laws likely to be proposed

Councilmember Cathy Moore’s announcement earlier this week that she would step down from her position seemingly threw into question that effort’s future.

seattletimes.com

Trump’s travel ban shakes up WA immigrant communities www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news...

‘Another layer of cruelty’: WA immigrant communities shaken by Trump travel ban

The Seattle region has large numbers of people from several of the countries named in the ban, including Afghanistan, Somalia, Eritrea and Iran.

seattletimes.com

The current monthly mortgage payment for a mid-tier home (per Zillow) with 20% down. And this is by metro area, so it assumes a home price lower than you'll ever find in Seattle proper. RIP San Jose.

WA gets its official rent increase cap for the rest of this year: 10%. This applies to you unless your rental was built in the last 12 years, is subsidized, or in certain cases where your landlord lives on site.

“I don’t know what I’m going to do. I really don’t. Live in my car.” Some tenants welcome WA’s new cap on rent hikes. Others fear it’s too little too late. www.seattletimes.com/business/rea...

Assessing the pros and cons of WA’s new rent hike cap

A new state law caps increases in rent for many tenants across Washington. As tenants welcome new stability, landlords worry more regulations could be on the way.

seattletimes.com

"Journalists, on the other hand, are obligated to point out everything that sucks, no matter what. This is why journalists are unpopular. Along with their personalities."

Hamilton Nolan@hamiltonnolan.bsky.social · last yr.

Journalism is a slow and uncertain grind with no shortcuts and if that is unsatisfying, well, imagine how we feel! www.hamiltonnolan.com/p/free-advic...

Who's got ideas for the Bastyr campus? www.seattletimes.com/business/rea...

Should real estate agents be able to list homes that not everyone can easily see? Seller choice or fair housing nightmare? Inside Seattle real estate's current beef: www.seattletimes.com/business/rea...

The private home listings most buyers aren’t seeing

The debate about private home posts highlights fault lines about the role of listing services, the interests of buyers versus sellers and questions of fundamental fairness.

seattletimes.com

I'm so excited and honored to be part of this group (!!!!!) and learn in new ways (fun) about our broken housing market (depressing). Send me your best Ann Arbor recs!

Meet 2025-2026 Knight-Wallace Journalism Fellows

They will spend an academic year tackling individual journalism projects and pursuing solutions to help newsrooms respond to today's challenges. Meet the Fellows and read about their journalism projec...

wallacehouse.umich.edu

Wallace House Center for Journalists@umwallacehouse.bsky.social · last yr.

Welcome our ✨ 2025-2026 Knight-Wallace Fellows ✨ — 18 journalists from eight countries and across the U.S. are headed to Ann Arbor! 📰 Get to know the newest cohort of the Knight-Wallace family 👉 loom.ly/3I1EsSM

Gov. Ferguson signs: -cap on rent hikes -parking reform -condo law changes www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news...

Gov. Ferguson signs slate of 10 new WA housing bills into law

Easily the most contested housing bill of the session, House Bill 1217 limits the amount a landlord can raise rent on tenants in a yearly period.

seattletimes.com

Trump's war on woke comes for Seattle housing programs www.seattletimes.com/business/rea...

White House blasts Seattle housing program as ‘woke,’ pitches budget cuts

President Donald Trump's 2026 budget proposal would slash funding for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, bringing cuts to key programs in WA.

seattletimes.com

ICYMI, @ryanjhaas.bsky.social and I made a podcast last year about Jesse Johnson, who spent 17 years on Oregon's death row. It's a shocking case. Perhaps what's even more shocking is that a show about this level of injustice could be lost in our news cycle. So, this award feels nice.

Ryan Haas@ryanjhaas.bsky.social · last yr.

"Hush" won first place in the National Headliner Awards for investigative podcasts! @leahsottile.bsky.social and I brought for the story of Jesse Johnson, a man who spent 17 years on death row and many more locked up for a crime he says he didn't commit. Listen here: www.opb.org/show/hush/

After years of tenant advocates pushing for rent-hike limits in WA, lawmakers just passed a bill to cap many rent increases at 7% + inflation or 10%, whichever is less. Now the question is, will Gov. Ferguson sign it? via @ssowersby.bsky.social www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news...

WA bill to cap rent hikes clears both chambers, heads to governor

OLYMPIA — Democratic lawmakers passed a compromise version of a bill to cap yearly rent increases Sunday, the final day of the state's 2025 legislative session.  The latest version of House Bill 1217,...

seattletimes.com

Shoutout to Daniel Bice of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, who’s been on the Judge Dugan story all week. You can catch up on his coverage here www.jsonline.com/staff/264800...

Daniel Bice

Daniel Bice is a columnist for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel's Watchdog team.

jsonline.com

Pike Place Market, the Seattle icon and tourist draw, is going (partially) car free beginning tomorrow. www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news...

Pike Place Market banning most vehicle traffic in test run

Regular traffic on Pike Place will be cut off, with certain exceptions. The goal of restricting cars is to improve Market access and safety for pedestrians.

seattletimes.com

“Leaving no crystal unturned, Sottile unearths intriguing similarities across disparate fringe groups (near-constant antisemitism, frequent female leadership) that bolster her thesis that cults are a feature, not a bug, of American spiritual life.” www.publishersweekly.com/9781538742600

Blazing Eye Sees All: Love Has Won, False Prophets, and the Fever Dream of the American New Age by Leah Sottile

Journalist Sottile (When the Moon Turns to Blood) offers an ambitious study of Love Has Won, a spiritual group and alleged cult....

publishersweekly.com

If you care about Snohomish County/WA state journalism, tell the new owners not to gut the quality of our news. Email them at: letters@heraldnet.com

Heidi Groover@heidigroover.bsky.social · 2y ago

“‘This would essentially spam the front page of the Herald website with worthless content while good stories go untold,’ said Jordan Hansen, a Herald reporter and Everett NewsGuild member.” myeverettnews.com/2024/12/06/e...