The Washington Court of Appeals allowed GRE Downtowner LLC to proceed with claims that Seattle's rental regulations constitute an unconstitutional taking of private property—a legal victory that could influence similar disputes in Philadelphia and other cities challenging broad tenant protection ordinances.
GRE Downtowner owns the 254-unit Addison on Fourth apartment complex, developed as affordable housing under the federal Low-Income Housing Tax Credit program. The company alleges that Seattle's successive rental restrictions made its $39 million investment financially unsustainable, ultimately forcing the property into receivership.
The Addison on Fourth operated profitably through 2018, generating positive cash flow under the affordable housing model. But after Seattle enacted ordinances restricting criminal-background checks, expanding tenant rights to bring in additional occupants without landlord consent, limiting certain evictions, and requiring relocation assistance following qualifying rent increases, GRE Downtowner's finances deteriorated sharply.
Rent collections plummeted from 93.9 percent in 2018 to 44.1 percent in 2023, producing nearly $5.8 million in cumulative operating losses. The property defaulted on its mortgage, and a federal judge appointed a receiver in January 2026.
Sean Flynn, executive director of the Rental Housing Association of Washington, said his organization is working with GRE Downtowner in its case against the city. He characterized Seattle's ordinances as a "toxic cocktail of legislation" that "destroyed" a functioning affordable housing property.
