Guides · Selling
Selling an adult family home in Washington
The buyer does not inherit your licence, your Medicaid contract ends with it, and you owe your residents sixty days of written notice before any of it happens. Most of what makes a change of ownership slow is written down in the rules rather than decided by the market.
What a sale transfers#
What a change of ownership (CHOW) actually is#
A change of ownership happens when the provider changes, or when control of the provider changes. That includes handing business operations and management to somebody else, whether or not the real estate changes hands at all.
This catches people out. You can keep the house, lease it to the new operator, and still have triggered a change of ownership, because the licence follows who runs the home rather than who holds the deed.
If you are coming at this from the other direction, turning a house into a licensed adult family home is a different process with its own rules.
Sources
- WAC 388-76-10105, change of ownership, Washington State Legislature
Thinking about listing this year?
Talk through your timelineThe buyer needs their own licence#
Your licence is not an asset you can sell. A change of ownership requires a new licence application and a new licence, and the buyer has to qualify on their own.
Practically, that means your sale is only as certain as your buyer's application. A buyer who cannot be licensed cannot complete, however good the price is.
Sixty days of written notice, to the department and to your residents#
The current owner must give written notice sixty calendar days before the proposed change of ownership date, to the department and to every resident or their representative.
The notice has to name the present and prospective owner, including each partner, member, officer and director if either is an entity. It has to give the name and address of the home, the date of the notice, and anything about the home's policies or operations that could affect a resident's ability to live there.
And it has to tell each resident something that matters commercially: that they get to decide whether they stay or move.
Sources
- WAC 388-76-10106, notice of change of ownership, Washington State Legislature
The Medicaid contract does not come with the house#
If you hold a contract to serve Medicaid clients, that contract terminates when your licence terminates. It does not pass to the buyer. They sign their own.
Specialty contracts do not transfer either. Meaningful Day Activities, Expanded Community Services and Specialized Behaviour Support all end with the licence.
Seven and eight bed homes have a much shorter buyer list#
If the home is licensed for seven or eight residents, the buyer cannot be new to this. They must already be a licensed adult family home provider and have held that licence for at least 24 months.
On top of that they need to have been licensed for six or more residents in their current home for the 12 months immediately before applying, and to have had at least two full inspections with no enforcement action taken in that window.
That is a small pool. It is the single biggest difference between selling a six bed home and selling an eight bed one, and it belongs in the pricing conversation rather than discovered later.
Sources
- WAC 388-76-10032, seven and eight bed homes, Washington State Legislature
What this does to price and timing#
Two of the rules above move the number, and both are worth planning around rather than reacting to.
The sixty day notice means the clock on a change of ownership is longer than a normal sale, and it starts before closing rather than after. Residents learn early, by law, and they are told in writing that they may leave.
Census is part of what a buyer is paying for. If residents move during the notice period, what the buyer is buying has changed between agreement and closing. I would want that addressed in the contract rather than argued about at the end.
And on the seven and eight bed homes, a restricted buyer pool does what restricted demand always does. Fewer qualified buyers means longer marketing time, and it rewards finding the right buyer early over running a wide search.
If you are looking at this from the buying side instead, the adult family homes currently for sale are listed separately.
Rules referenced: WAC 388-76-10105 and WAC 388-76-10106 for change of ownership, notice and the Medicaid contract, and WAC 388-76-10032 for seven and eight bed homes. Rules are amended. Check the current text before you rely on it. Licensing is the department's business, not mine, and nothing here is advice on it.
Common questions#
Does the buyer take over my licence?
No. A change of ownership requires a new licence application and a new licence. The buyer has to meet the licensing requirements on their own, so the sale depends on their application as well as on price.
How much notice do I owe my residents?
Sixty calendar days of written notice before the proposed change of ownership date, to the department and to every resident or their representative. The notice must tell each resident they can decide whether to stay or move.
Does my Medicaid contract transfer to the buyer?
No. The contract to serve Medicaid clients terminates when the licence terminates. The buyer signs their own. Specialty contracts such as Meaningful Day Activities, Expanded Community Services and Specialized Behaviour Support do not transfer either.
Can anyone buy a seven or eight bed home?
No. A change of ownership applicant for a home licensed at seven or eight must already be a licensed adult family home provider for at least 24 months, have been licensed for six or more residents for the 12 months before applying, and have had two full inspections with no enforcement action.
I am keeping the building and leasing it to the new operator. Is that still a change of ownership?
Yes, if control of the operation changes. A change of ownership covers transferring business operations and management responsibility, whether or not the real property transfers with it.