Christian OsgoodCEO, Multifamily Strategy · CEO at Multifamily Strategy

Rental in Red and Blue States

13 Mar 2026 · 2 min

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1:44

In this monologue, a landlord describes a dispute with a tenant in Washington State who demanded $150,000, alleging mold‑related health problems despite lacking medical documentation and any evidence of mold. The unit had been recently renovated, and a city code‑enforcement inspection confirmed the absence of mold or odors. The tenant’s mother was asked to verify mold but refused, indicating a financial motive. The landlord points out that Washington, a blue‑state, provides free legal representation to tenants through organizations like Northwest Justice Mission, forcing landlords to incur substantial legal fees even when they are confident they will win. He emphasizes that being legally correct does not shield landlords from costly litigation, contrasting this with red‑state environments where such expenses are less common. The speaker’s narrative underscores the financial burden placed on landlords by expansive tenant‑protection policies in blue states.

Chapters

Red states versus blue states investing. This is an expense that no one is talking about. It's one of the most expensive things that happens in blue states. It is your actual legal fees. And no, I'm not talking about evictions, though they're a big problem. I have a tenant right now, and this has happened to me before. They're demanding $150,000, like actually sent us a demand letter because they got fired from their job for lack of attendance. Now they blamed their unit condition and health problems that mold has caused. There's only a few problems. One, there are no doctor's notes. Two, most importantly, there is no mold. In fact, they're in a renovated unit where we've replaced windows, flooring, plumbing. They're in a brand new, actually really beautiful unit. The problem is they are after money. Now, when the city inspectors actually came out, because they called code enforcement, city inspectors basically said, uh, there's no smells, there's no mold, this is a beautiful unit. She just started screaming at them saying, I'm not crazy, I'm not crazy. She asked her mother to verify the mold. She said, I won't lie for you. Her response was, Mom, we need the money. That's actually what's happening. However, in a blue state like Washington, they actually have lawyers who will work for free for tenants as part of the Northwest Justice Mission. We're going to come in and help tenant rights. A lawyer will come in for free, state-sponsored, and help them fight us in court. I'll have to pay thousands of dollars to defend. Now, of course, we'll win. In fact, she signed in her lease every year that when she's renewed, excellent condition, I have no complaints. She has a move-in inspection report. And we also, as a bonus, have the city inspection saying there is no mold and everything's up to date. That being said, being right does not matter in Washington State. You still have to pay to be right. And if you're in a blue state like Washington, it might cost you thousands of dollars even when you do everything legally perfectly.