(1) Upon receipt from a county, city, or town of an affidavit or declaration under penalty of perjury that a property is abandoned, in mid-foreclosure, and a nuisance, a mortgage servicer or its designee may enter the property for the purposes of abating the identified nuisance, preserving property, or preventing waste and may take steps to secure the property, including but not limited to:
(a) Installing missing locks on exterior doors. If any locks are changed the mortgage servicer must provide a lock box. Working locks may not be removed or replaced unless all doors are secured and there is no means of entry, and in such cases only one working lock may be removed and replaced;
(b) Replacing or boarding broken or missing windows;
(c) Winterizing, including draining pipes and disconnecting or turning on utilities;
(d) Eliminating building code or other code violations;
(e) Securing exterior pools and spas;
(f) Performing routine yard maintenance on the exterior of the residence; and
(g) Performing pest and insect control services.
(2) The mortgage servicer or its designee must make a record of entry by means of dated and time-stamped photographs showing the manner of entry and personal items visible within the residence upon entry.
(3) Neither the mortgage servicer nor its designee may remove personal items from the property unless the items are hazardous or perishable, and in case of such removal must inventory the items removed.
(4) Prior to each entry, a mortgage servicer or its designee must ensure that a notice is posted on the front door that includes the following:
(a) A statement that, pursuant to RCW
7.28.230, until foreclosure and sale is complete the property owner or occupant authorized by the owner has the right to possession;
(b) A statement that the property owner or occupant authorized by the owner has the right to request that any locks installed by the mortgage servicer or its designee be removed within twenty-four hours and replaced with new locks accessible by the property owner or occupant authorized by the owner only;
(c) A toll-free, twenty-four hour number that the property owner or occupant authorized by the owner may call in order to gain timely entry, which entry must be provided no later than the next business day; and
(d) The phone number of the statewide foreclosure hotline recommended by the housing finance commission and the statewide civil legal aid hotline, together with a statement that the property owner may have the right to participate in foreclosure mediation pursuant to RCW
61.24.163.
(5) Records of entry onto property pursuant to this section must be maintained by the mortgage servicer or its designee for at least four years from the date of entry.
(6) If, upon entry, the property is found to be occupied, the mortgage servicer or its designee must leave the property immediately, notify the county, city, or town, and thereafter neither the mortgage servicer nor its designee may enter the property regardless of whether the property constitutes a nuisance or complies with local code enforcement standards.
(7) In the event a mortgage servicer is contacted by the borrower and notified that the property is not abandoned, the mortgage servicer must so notify the county, city, or town and thereafter neither the mortgage servicer nor its designee may enter the property regardless of whether the property constitutes a nuisance or complies with local code enforcement standards.
(8) A county, city, or town is not liable for any damages caused by any act or omission of the mortgage servicer or its designee.
