JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A Florida congressman wants to help renters struggling with affordability.
U.S. Rep. Maxwell Frost (D) has introduced the “End Junk Fees for Renters Act” to crack down on fees imposed by landlords that make it difficult to comparison shop.
Frost said Florida has a housing affordability crisis and hopes that, if passed, the bill would allow more people to shop around for housing and give renters more power to drive down the cost of rent.
“This is a crisis. There’s a difference between profit and profiteering off of rent, I don’t think anyone should be profiteering off the housing,” Frost said.
The provisions of the bill include:
- Banning application and screening fees
- Requiring late fees apply as credit to next month’s rent
- Ending fees for paying rent online
- Prohibiting credit checks in the rental screening process
“A lot of people will do a great job in paying the rent, and obviously, sometimes leave credit card bills or etc. last because they’re trying to feed their family and pay their rent and pay for their essential expenses,” Frost said. “Housing is an essential expense. And so, we don’t believe that credit score should be used in determining whether or not someone is good to pay their rent or not. It’s keeping a lot of families from renting right now. Especially young people to you haven’t even developed credit yet.”
The federal proposal was just introduced in Washington last week with the backing of housing advocacy groups like the National Housing Law Project and the National Consumer Law Center.
Why do renter fees exist?
Senior Vice President of Government Affairs for the National Apartment Association, Greg Brown, said the fees are important to pay for the administrative work that goes into renting an apartment or home.
“Rental housing is a narrow-margin industry and amenities and services come at a cost, which is communicated with residents in the lease and the leasing process,” Brown said. “The rental housing industry supports increased transparency and encourages dialogue between housing providers and their residents, however policymakers must recognize operational realities and the role that fees play in housing viability.”
It’s still unclear right now how much traction Frost’s proposal will gain on the congressional level. He tells News4JAX he does have a plan to introduce more pro-renter legislation.