Cap on Rental Application Fees Law Goes into Effect January 1, 2024 (2024)

FAQs

Cap on Rental Application Fees Law Goes into Effect January 1, 2024? ›

New State Law Bans Rental Application Fees Starting January 1, 2024. As of January 1, 2024, a new state law is set to bring significant changes to the rental application process. This law aims to protect rental applicants from excessive fees while still allowing landlords to assess potential tenants effectively.

Starting on January 1, 2024, a new state law will prohibit landlords, rental agents, and property managers from charging application fees to rental applicants - with two exceptions.

Gen. Laws § 34-18-59. Section 34-18-59 - Fair limitation on rental application fees - Effective January 1, 2024 (a) A landlord, lessor, sub-lessor, real estate broker, property management company, or designee shall not be allowed to require or demand any prospective tenant to pay for a rental application fee.

The Tenant Protection Act caps rent increases for most residential tenants in California. Landlords can't raise rent more than 10% total or 5% + CPI increase (whichever is lower) over a 12-month period. No-fault evictions are prohibited, so landlords can't evict a tenant without cause.

Limiting fees

For example, landlords can no longer charge tenants more than one late fee if rent is overdue. Further, they can no longer charge a rental application processing fee (although they can still require a security deposit and key fee as well as first month's rent).

Required Materials

A $70 nonrefundable application fee will be collected through LSAC at the time the application is submitted.

Texas – Application fees are allowed with no limits and they are non-refundable. Utah – Application fees are allowed with no limits and they are non-refundable.

The fee covers the administrative costs associated with processing your application so landlords can verify your credit history, rental history, employment status and can conduct background checks for criminal records or eviction history.

How much should a rental application cost? Most rental application fees are between $35 and $75 per person, but the exact limit of what a rental application fee can or should cost depends on the area you are working in.

Application Fees and Security Deposits in Florida

In Florida, landlords may charge a non-refundable fee to cover the costs of processing rental applications; however, it should be reasonable to remain in line with competitive housing market guidelines.

What are the changes in California rent law in 2024? ›

The new law, effective from July 1, 2024, makes California the twelfth state to cap security deposits at one month's rent. Small landlords with no more than two properties and four units are exempt from the legislation. For California residents, the move is a step toward improving housing affordability.

Wage Increase Fast-Food Wage. AB 1228 requires California fast-food restaurants to raise minimum wage for employees to $20.00 per hour beginning on April 1, 2024.

Effective April 1, 2024, SB 567 will add a significant hurdle to any “no-fault just cause” eviction where the property owner (or the owner's direct relative) desires to occupy the residential real property or an investor seeks to displace the tenant for a substantial remodel.

The law does not place a limit on late rent payment fees, but the law implies that California landlords may only charge a reasonable estimate on what the late payment costs the landlord. Generally, a reasonable late fee is considered to be 5% to 10% of the total cost of rent.

The latest significant renters' law in Connecticut includes measures to protect renters from eviction without just cause and requires landlords to provide a clear process for security deposit returns.

The landlord can charge a fee for late rent, but only if it says so in your lease. You can only be charged the smallest of these fees: up to $5 per day the rent is late, but not more than $50 in any month; 5% of the amount of the overdue rent; or.

Pay the nonrefundable $75 application fee. Fee waivers are available to students who qualify based on need.

While not a direct charge applied to your base rent, the admin fee helps subsidize critical staff efforts that enable new residents to smoothly transition into the community. Expect the fee to equate to anywhere between $50-$350 that is typically due with your application.

Pay the non-refundable application fee of $75 when you submit your application. You can request a fee waiver. Requests can be made in the application, or by submitting the Request for Fee Waiver form via our Document Upload System in MyStatus.