Congressman Dan Goldman Continues Fight to Eliminate Predatory Junk Fees for Renters

‘End Junk Fees for Renters Act’ Would Bring Relief to Millions of Renters Burdened by Surprise, Hidden Fees 

Read the Bill Here

Washington D.C. – Congressman Dan Goldman (NY-10) joined Congressmen Maxwell Frost (FL-10) and Jimmy Gomez (CA-34) to introduce the ‘End Junk Fees for Renters Act’, that would end the growing number of excessive and predatory junk fees that increase costs for renters nationwide. Unnecessary fees like exorbitant application fees, screening fees, credit check fees, and late fees threaten families’ ability to obtain affordable housing.

In New York City, the average monthly rent is $5,158 and $3,909 in Manhattan and Brooklyn respectively, a 22 percent and 13 percent increase from February 2020 levels, before the COVID-19 pandemic. Nearly half of New Yorkers pay over 30 percent of their income on rent and nearly a quarter report that over half of their income goes to rent payments.

“New York City is in the midst of a severe rental crisis while corporate landlords rake in record profits by artificially inflating the cost of rent with exorbitant junk fees,” Congressman Dan Goldman said. “As housing costs skyrocket, we must do everything possible to eliminate hidden costs that exacerbate this problem. We cannot allow New Yorkers to be nickel and dimed out of the city and must make sure New York remains an affordable option for everyone.”

The ‘End Junk Fees for Renters Act’ would:

• Crack down on junk fees by banning application and screening fees; 

• Put an end to late fee profiteering by requiring late fees apply as credit to next month’s rent;  

• Prohibit credit score screening in the rental application process; 

• Require that landlords disclose in the rental contract: 

  • Past and present litigation with tenants; 

  • Ongoing pest and maintenance issues; 

  • Rent increase percentages year after year over the last ten years; and 

  • The total amount that will be due each month, which will put an end to surprise fees. 

• Help consumers comparison shop and make more informed choices when it comes to renting, inevitably driving down overall costs in the rental market and improving living conditions.

Congressman Goldman is committed to supporting New York’s working families by ensuring they have access to safe, quality, affordable housing.

Earlier this week, Congressman Goldman sent a letter to New York Attorney General Letitia James calling for her office to investigate the multinational, multi-billion-dollar company RealPage Inc., which has been accused of anticompetitive behavior and manipulating market rent rates through their price optimization software, YieldStar.

As one of his first acts in Congress, Representative Goldman and Congresswoman Nydia Velázquez (NY-07) introduced the ‘Public Housing Emergency Response Act.’ This bill would allocate $70 billion in funding forcapital repairs and upgrades to public housing throughout the country. $32 billion of the allotted aid would be expected to flow directly to the New York City Housing Authority, the nation’s largest Public Housing Authority.

Additionally, the Congressman cosponsored the 'Affordable Housing Credit Improvement Act' to expand and strengthen the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit and spur collaboration between private-sector resources and state-level government administration to build and rehabilitate millions of affordable homes across the country.

Congressman Goldman is also founding member of the Congressional Renter’s Caucus which will work to expand assistance for all eligible cost-burdened renters, eliminate bureaucratic and discriminatory barriers to accessing affordable housing; and improve the quality, availability, and affordability of our nation’s rental housing stock.

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