The July builder sentiment numbers released by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) fell two points to 34 nationally and 27 in the West amid continued economic uncertainty and market challenges. The NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) gauges builder confidence in the market for newly built single-family homes. Locally, the Seattle metro area’s unemployment rate is 5.2%, one point higher than the U.S. unemployment rate.

As Rampathon 2026 winds down it’s a good time to reflect on MBAKS’ long-running involvement in this program and the positive impact it has, not just on the people we help, but our members as well. 

Since 1993, Rampathon has brought together MBAKS volunteers to build more than 650 free accessibility ramps for neighbors across King and Snohomish counties. 

A Tradition of Support

Among the many partners who help make Rampathon possible, Habitat for Humanity Seattle-King and Kittitas Counties stands out for its deep commitment to long-term housing stability. Since its founding in 1986, Habitat SKKC has constructed or renovated 500 homes and completed more than 700 home repairs benefitting more than 3,000 people. 

The Habitat SKKC repair team has been part of Rampathon since 2018, and according to Kait Heacock, Habitat SKKC communications manager, it is one of their favorite times of the year. “Everyone pitches in to make these ramps happen,” Heacock said. “We have seen firsthand how life-changing these accessibility modifications can be for our homeowners and love being a part of the program.” This year, Habitat SKKC is building four ramps as part of the program located across Kent, Renton, Auburn, and Federal Way. 

A Helper Who Needed Help

One of Habitat SKKC’s most memorable stories from this year is about a longtime Pacific Northwest resident named Lawrence who moved here in 1978 from Ohio. Now retired, Lawrence spends much of his time helping friends and family with things like car repairs, electrical work (he used to install telephone service), plumbing, drywall, and household projects. Not to mention he is also known to whip up a variety of cakes (rum, orange liqueur, piña colada, banana split) from his basement bakery. 

Unfortunately, ongoing issues with one of his knees had made it difficult for Lawrence to walk up and down stairs and maintain his balance. It was starting to interfere with his active (and helpful) lifestyle, and even accessing his front door had become a challenge. Although he had visited Habitat stores for years to buy materials for his projects, he had never used Habitat SKKC’s repair services until recently. When he reached out, the repair team quickly determined that a ramp would significantly improve Lawrence’s safety and independence.

The ramp construction took approximately two weeks. Along the way the team also completed additional repairs, including replacing leaking plumbing and rebuilding worn deck boards and front steps. Lawrence knew the repairs were difficult and that he could not safely tackle them alone but, true to form, he stayed as involved as he could, assisting with parts of the project and preparing barbecue, salads, and cakes (of course) for the repair team to help say “thank you.”

With the work completed, Lawrence reports that the improvements have reduced his stress and made his home far more accessible. He also sees the repairs as beneficial not only for himself but for friends and neighbors who have difficulty using stairs. “The ramp has made me feel a lot more comfortable when people come to visit,” he said.

Stories like Lawrence’s really bring home why MBAKS is so committed to Rampathon and why volunteering can be so meaningful for our members. An accessibility ramp might seem like a very simple solution, but it can make a huge difference helping someone remain in their home, supporting them if they have mobility challenges, removing barriers that might keep them isolated, and providing peace of mind for families. It’s the sort of impact that really reflects the values that drive MBAKS members: service, craftsmanship, and a commitment to strengthening the communities where we live. 

Building a Lasting Impact

As we wrap up Rampathon 2026, we want to thank all of the volunteer builder members and Signature Sponsor, Dunn Lumber, who make it possible. MBAKS looks forward to continuing its partnership with Habitat SKKC and many other organizations as we build on the momentum of 2026. We know the work will be challenging, but also rewarding. Not every day can be sunny, especially around here. But as Lawrence says, “When people say, ‘The sun’s not shining,’ I tell them the sun’s shining every day if you look past the clouds. That’s what life is about.”  

Image by Spicypepper999 - Own work, CC0

Under the leadership of Mayor Mark Mullet and the City Council, the City of Issaquah has taken an important step to streamline housing production by adopting Washington's first accessory dwelling unit (ADU) self-certification program. This action reflects the City's commitment to pursuing innovative solutions that reduce permitting barriers while maintaining accountability.

Approved by the Issaquah City Council on July 20, the new permitting pathway allows licensed architects to self-certify qualifying detached ADUs under 1,000 square feet to bypass duplicative building plan review, reducing unnecessary review steps while maintaining important safety and environmental protections.

MBAKS supported the ordinance throughout the process and submitted a letter of support outlining how the proposal can help reduce permitting delays, lower development costs, and encourage the construction of additional housing throughout the city.

A First-in-Washington Housing Reform

While several Washington jurisdictions have adopted pre-approved ADU plans, Issaquah is the first local city in the state to implement a self-certification program authorized under RCW 36.70A.683, legislation enacted by the Washington State Legislature in 2025.

The law allows certain jurisdictions to establish self-certification programs for ADUs, recognizing that licensed design professionals can play a greater role in certifying code compliance and reducing permitting bottlenecks.

By embracing this authority, Issaquah is positioning itself as a statewide leader in housing innovation and demonstrating a willingness to pursue practical solutions that can increase housing opportunities.

How the Program Works

Under the new ordinance, Washington-licensed architects may certify that a detached ADU complies with applicable building code requirements, eliminating the need for the City's traditional building code plan review for qualifying projects.

Importantly, the ordinance does not eliminate local oversight. The City will continue to conduct reviews related to land use compliance, stormwater management and more. This will ensure projects can benefit from a more efficient permitting process while maintaining the site-specific reviews necessary to protect public safety and environmental resources.

Why It Matters

Accessory dwelling units continue to be one of the most effective tools available for increasing housing supply within existing neighborhoods. ADUs can provide housing opportunities for family members, aging parents, caregivers, young professionals, and local workers while making efficient use of existing infrastructure.

However, lengthy permitting timelines, uncertainty, and regulatory costs frequently discourage homeowners from pursuing projects. By reducing duplicative review processes, Issaquah's new program is intended to remove barriers that often prevent housing from being built.

MBAKS Applauds Issaquah's Leadership

MBAKS commends Mayor Mark Mullet, the Issaquah City Council, Community Planning & Development staff, and the Issaquah Community for advancing this innovative policy.

As communities across Washington continue searching for ways to expand housing choices, Issaquah has established a model that other cities should consider. By implementing a practical, common-sense permitting reform authorized by state law, the City has demonstrated that it is possible to increase efficiency while maintaining accountability and public safety.

The Bellevue City Council has adopted an ordinance implementing residential lot splitting, creating another tool to help increase housing opportunities through more efficient land division. The ordinance was adopted on July 28 as part of a larger package of land use code amendments. MBAKS supported adoption and submitted this July 28 letter to the City Council. 

Bellevue deserves recognition for being one of the first jurisdictions in King and Snohomish counties to implement Washington’s new lot splitting law, HB 1096 (now codified in RCW 58.17.145). The City has taken an important step by establishing a local process and ensuring its code is consistent with the intent of state law. MBAKS also appreciates Bellevue staff's collaborative approach and willingness to work through implementation issues before adoption.

One important caveat is that Bellevue's new residential lot splitting provisions will not take effect until July 27, 2027. The City chose to delay implementation to allow time to establish a new, streamlined permit type and complete the work needed to administer the new process. While MBAKS would have preferred an earlier effective date, we appreciate Bellevue's thoughtful approach to implementation and its commitment to creating a permitting process that is as efficient and user-friendly as possible.

What Is Residential Lot Splitting?

HB 1096, passed by the Legislature in 2025, requires cities planning under the Growth Management Act to allow qualifying residential lots to be administratively divided into two lots without requiring a traditional short plat or subdivision process.

The goal is to create a simpler, faster path to divide eligible residential lots while maintaining local development standards, infrastructure requirements, and environmental protections. Once divided, each lot can be developed consistent with local zoning and the middle housing requirements adopted under state law.

Read the new residential lot splitting provisions: Ordinance 6933 beginning at the bottom of page 37. 

Contact: data@mbaks.com

July Builders Bulletin: Population growth slows in region

DOWNLOAD THE REPORT 

The Washington State Department of Commerce has released its latest Annual Permitting Performance Report, providing a comprehensive look at permitting timelines across Washington, including 32 jurisdictions in King and Snohomish counties. The report is required by Senate Bill 5290, enacted in 2023 to improve permitting efficiency, increase transparency, and hold local jurisdictions accountable for development review timelines. It shows encouraging progress in meeting statutory review timelines while also highlighting additional opportunities to reduce the total time it takes to deliver housing.

The report also reinforces why continued reforms such as concurrent review, clear and objective development standards, and subdivision modernization remain important to reducing housing delays.

 “The annual reporting requirements established under SB 5290 give policymakers and the public a clearer picture of where projects are moving efficiently and where improvements are still needed,” said MBAKS Government Affairs Director Jennifer Anderson. “The report is an important step toward transparency, but it should be viewed as one piece of a much larger picture. The next step is removing unnecessary layers of review, eliminating subjective approval criteria, and streamlining permitting to ensure every review serves a meaningful public purpose.”

Key takeaways:

• The report reinforces permitting delays remain a significant housing affordability issue. Every month a project sits in review adds cost and uncertainty, making it harder to deliver homes people can afford.
• Subdivision approvals continue to be one of the biggest bottlenecks for homeownership. Delays in preliminary and final plats directly delay opportunities for families to purchase a home.
• There is wide variation among jurisdictions. Some cities and counties are demonstrating that efficient permit review is achievable, while others continue to experience substantial delays. This shows that many delays are driven by local process and implementation, not statutory requirements alone.
• Process improvements can make a meaningful difference. Jurisdictions investing in permit streamlining, consolidated review, and administrative improvements are beginning to demonstrate better outcomes, reinforcing that regulatory reform can reduce delays without compromising health and safety.
• The next step is removing unnecessary layers of review. While reporting is important, Washington jurisdictions must continue modernizing subdivision laws, expanding administrative approvals, encouraging concurrent review, and reducing duplicative permit processes so more homes can reach the market sooner. Continued efforts to require clear and objective development standards and ensure timely completeness determinations will also be essential to delivering more housing opportunities for Washington families.

View Annual Permitting Performance Report 2025

Understanding the Data

While SB 5290 reporting is an important accountability tool, it measures statutory review performance rather than the entire housing permitting process. As policymakers evaluate the report's findings, it is important to understand both what the data measures, and what it does not.

The report reveals several important themes:

• The data shows progress, but comparisons should be interpreted carefully. The reported improvement in preliminary plat review times is encouraging, but the 2025 data is not directly comparable to the 2024 baseline. Changes in the statutory review period, the removal of atypical legacy projects from the baseline, and differing local review timelines all influence year-to-year comparisons.
• "Stop-the-clock" data does not capture every permitting delay. SB 5290 measures time based on when jurisdictions pause and restart the statutory review clock. It does not reflect delays resulting from disagreements over subjective code interpretation, unnecessary additional review cycles, or requests for technical revisions that could often be addressed through conditions of approval. From an applicant's perspective, these are real delays even though they are not reflected in the reported timelines.
• Some delays occur before the clock ever starts. The report begins measuring time once an application is deemed complete. It does not capture situations where jurisdictions spend weeks or months conducting substantive review before issuing a determination of completeness. Recent legislation (HB 2418) helps reinforce that completeness reviews should be procedural and checklist-based, improving consistency across jurisdictions.
• Concurrent review remains an important opportunity for reform. Permit review timelines can appear compliant while projects still experience lengthy delays if construction permits cannot be reviewed concurrently with subdivision applications. Expanding concurrent review would shorten overall project timelines without reducing regulatory oversight.

For additional background or information on Senate Bill 5290, its requirements for local governments and best practices to streamline the local permitting process, see MBAKS Streamlining Local Permitting Processes Issue Brief.

Why This Matters

Efficient, on-time permitting is one of the most effective tools local governments have to reduce costs and increase supply. Every month of delay means more families are priced out of homeownership. Better permitting isn't just about helping homebuilders. It's about creating more housing opportunities, improving affordability, and ensuring everyone has a place to call home.

Ultimately, the goal isn’t simply to improve statutory review metrics. It is to shorten the total time it takes to move housing projects from application to construction and get more homes on the market.

For every $1,000 increase in the cost of the median-priced new home, 982 households are priced out of the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue market area.

Source: https://www.nahb.org/news-and-economics/housing-economics/housings-economic-impact/households-priced-out-by-higher-house-prices-and-interest-rates

The City of Bellevue is partnering with Govstream.ai to pilot new artificial intelligence tools aimed at improving the permitting process. The effort is focused on reducing permit delays, improving application quality, and helping staff manage growing workloads while maintaining customer service and review quality.

Bellevue and Govstream.ai identified three common challenges in the permitting process. Applicants often struggle to find information before applying. Applications are frequently submitted with missing information. Staff spend significant time working through multiple review and resubmittal cycles.

To address those challenges, the City is piloting several AI tools.

Permit Guide and Email Assistant

The first phase focuses on helping staff and applicants find information more quickly. A Permit Guide chat assistant helps staff research codes, GIS information, permit requirements, and other city resources using official Bellevue data. An Outlook-integrated Email Assistant can summarize email threads, identify applicable codes and site conditions, and draft responses with supporting citations. Bellevue's long-term goal is to make these tools available to the public for 24/7 self-service.

Application Assistant

The next phase focuses on improving application quality before submittal. Applicants upload project documents and the AI helps complete forms, identify missing information, and verify that required documents have been included. The system provides real-time guidance to reduce errors and incomplete applications.

The City is also piloting the Application Assistant with members of the development community. The initial pilot is focused on single-family homes, DADUs, and duplex permits.

First Review

The final phase would use AI to assist with initial permit screening. The goal is to identify basic issues early, route straightforward applications more efficiently, and allow staff to spend more time on complex reviews.

Early Results

The City reports a 30-percent reduction in routine permitting inquiries through its AI tools. Bellevue estimates staff currently spend roughly 20,000 hours annually responding to permit inquiries and hopes to significantly reduce that workload. The City has also established goals to:

• Reduce pre-application inquiry workload by 30 percent.
• Reduce permit resubmittals by 50 percent.
• Improve application quality and shorten review timelines.
• Support new home construction and economic development goals.

City staff reported positive feedback on the tools' efficiency and accuracy. Bellevue emphasized that AI will support, not replace, staff. Human reviewers will continue making permitting decisions while AI assists with research, customer service, application screening, and other routine tasks.

AI Pilot Expansion

Bellevue expects to expand the pilot over time, including a public-facing version of some of the tools later this year. If successful, the effort could improve permit timelines, reduce application corrections, and create a more predictable process for applicants.

For more information, see Bellevue's Innovation Partnership Webpage and the BDC January Meeting Slides.

The Master Builders Association of King and Snohomish Counties (MBAKS) held our annual Snohomish County Elected Officials Reception on Wednesday, June 17 at Rosehill Community Center in Mukilteo. The event drew elected officials and other local leaders from throughout the County and gave us a chance to thank them for their leadership and willingness to work alongside us on behalf of housing.

Everett Mayor Cassie Franklin, Marysville Mayor Jon Nehring, and Lynnwood Mayor George Hurst joined a panel discussion on how implementation of middle housing state laws is going in their communities, moderated by Snohomish County Builders Council Chair Ian Faulds of Sanbell.

The mayors shared insights on lessons learned related to middle housing development in their cities, as well as lessons from other cities they're applying to their own. Panelists spoke about the importance of aligning regulations with their long-term planning to provide more predictability, advancing permit streamlining measures, and establishing a culture in city government that views housing as a priority.

Mayors Franklin, Nehring, and Hurst also shared where they see the greatest opportunity for cities and builders to work together over the next few years, and what success would look like for housing in their cities. All three mayors agreed it is vital to engage and partner with the building community in this work. They described a vision for the future that meant more residents could afford to live and work in their communities, with housing options available to families and individuals at all stages of life.

MBAKS's Executive Director Jerry Hall rounded out the program by encouraging local leaders to consider all policies through a housing lens.

In case you missed it, view our takeaways from the event and our new middle housing resource to learn more about MBAKS's work on lowering barriers to middle housing options in the County.

Thanks to all the elected officials and MBAKS members who attended and helped make it a fun evening! If you missed this event, there's still time to register for the Seattle Builders Council Reception — July 29, 5:00–7:00 p.m. at Courtyard by Marriott Seattle Downtown/Pioneer Square.

For trusted remodeling professionals and associates in the Puget Sound, the Remodelers Council at the Master Builders Association of King and Snohomish Counties (MBAKS) has become a real community. Here, members can swap industry knowledge, build thriving business partnerships, or lend a helping hand. For current council chair Teri McDermott, this spirit of camaraderie is what makes the group so special.

“There’s a genuine openness and willingness to help one another that you don’t often see, even among competitors,” she says. “We all share a commitment to supporting each other and elevating our industry with high standards, and that’s something I truly value.”

Teri is the CEO and owner of  CRD Design Build, where she has been guiding Seattle-area homeowners through thoughtful remodeling projects for over three decades. She credits her start in the business to her late husband, who passed away in 2024. “I’m an accountant by degree and by nature, and I actually fell into construction through my husband, whom I’d been married to for more than 30 years. He started a company and needed support on the administrative and financial side, which is where I stepped in,” she says. “Over time, that path led us to purchasing CRD, and the rest is history.”

Serving the local community is at the core of Teri’s work. At CRD Design Build, she ensures each client is educated about the remodeling process so they can make informed decisions with confidence. “I have a strong passion for learning and education, and that carries into how we serve our clients.” Teri and her team are also regular Rampathon participants, serving neighbors in need year after year. “Volunteering our time to build ramps and improve accessibility for those in need is truly priceless and a powerful reminder of the difference we can make in our community.”

It's no surprise, then, that when asked what she'd do if she hadn't ended up in homebuilding, Teri's answer still centers on bringing people together. “I love planning parties!” she says. “If I didn’t own CRD, I’d likely be running a party planning business. I enjoy creating fun, memorable experiences for people of all ages.”

It’s this same enthusiasm that Teri brings to the Remodelers Council when sharing her vision for the year ahead. “My vision is to bring members together through education and collaboration. By building strong relationships and partnerships, we can continue to elevate our industry and support one another in meaningful ways,” she says. “There’s so much value in learning from each other, and that’s what excites me most.”

Learn more about the Remodelers Council and how you can get involved.