Junk Fees Are Backfiring on Wall Street Landlords—and Creating Opportunities for Smaller Investors

As if the affordability crisis weren’t tough enough for cash-strapped tenants, corporate landlords’ “junk fees,” heaped on top of “base rents,” have sparked the ire of the FTC, which recently issued an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM), according to The Guardian, resulting in possible legal action. The increased frustration among tenants and lawmakers with corporate landlords can be a win for smaller landlords, who rarely add extra fees on top of the rental amount quoted in a lease. The Regulatory Crackdown on Corporate Rental Fees Federal regulators and state attorneys general have initiated a nationwide crackdown on extra, mandatory charges in residential leasing. These include technology add-ons, trash pick-ups, utility processing surcharges, and nonrefundable administrative fees, among others. The Guardian reported that hundreds of tenants across the U.S. recently submitted public testimony to federal agencies describing how unexpected lease surcharges have inflated rental costs. During public comment proceedings in April, Seattle resident Farah Momin testified: “The rental housing market is one where consumers have little power. Landlords can impose fees through ta...