Fee Transparency and Advertised Rent

Which apartment fees must appear in advertised rent, where they must appear and under which law: FTC, all-in pricing states and city rules, each linked to its primary source.

7 guides · Written for multifamily operators · Updated October 22, 2026

Start hereReference table Rental Junk Fee Laws by State: The 2026 All-In Rent Table for Apartment and Multifamily OperatorsAs of October 22, 2026, Colorado, Connecticut, Massachusetts and Minnesota require advertised apartment rent to carry mandatory fees, each with different exclusions. Illinois adds listing disclosure and a fee ban for leases from January 1, 2027. New York City requires listings to disclose tenant-paid fees, and the FTC treats omitting mandatory fees as deceptive.
  • Connecticut counts fees billed by default even when renters can opt out, which is stricter than most national pricing templates.
  • Illinois, Minnesota and Connecticut also regulate the first page of the lease, not just the ad.
  • The FTC rental fee rulemaking and the NYC all-in pricing rule are proposals, kept separate from enacted law.
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Checklist9 min readFee Transparency Compliance Checklist for Apartment Listings: A Multifamily Audit TemplateA fee transparency audit compares every place a property advertises price (website, floor plans, unit pages, map, fee guide, application flow, each ILS) with the PMS fee schedule and the rules at that address. A surface passes only if its total monthly price includes every mandatory recurring fee, is the most prominent price, matches the PMS and appears before payment.Read the guide Explainer8 min readFTC Junk Fee Rules for Rental Housing: What the Greystar Order and 2026 Rulemaking Mean for Apartment OperatorsThere is no final FTC rule on apartment fees yet. The FTC treats advertised rent that leaves out mandatory fees as deceptive under Section 5 of the FTC Act, settled with Greystar for $24 million in December 2025, and opened a rental housing fee rulemaking in March 2026. Comments closed April 13, 2026, and no proposed rule has been published.Read the guide Reference table12 min readWhich Apartment Fees Must Be Included in Advertised Rent? A Fee-by-Fee Guide for Multifamily OperatorsMandatory recurring fees such as trash, valet trash, pest control, technology, package and amenity fees generally belong in the advertised monthly rent under all-in rules and the FTC's Greystar order. Optional fees, contingent fees such as late, pet or transfer fees, and utilities billed at actual cost can usually sit beside the rent, clearly labelled.Read the guide Explainer9 min readDoes California SB 478 Apply to Apartments? The Honest Pricing Law and Multifamily Advertised RentSB 478 does not name apartments. It added Civil Code 1770(a)(29) to the Consumers Legal Remedies Act, in force since July 1, 2024, banning advertised prices that leave out mandatory fees other than government taxes and shipping. Whether the CLRA reaches residential leases is unsettled, so the conservative course is to price advertised rent as if it does.Read the guide How-to10 min readNYC FARE Act Requirements for Apartment Landlords and Multifamily Operators: Listing Disclosures, Fee Records and the Proposed All-In RuleThe NYC FARE Act (Local Law 119 of 2024), in effect since June 11, 2025, stops landlords passing their own broker's fee to tenants. Every listing must clearly disclose all fees a tenant must pay, and the tenant signs an itemized fee disclosure before the lease, which the landlord keeps for three years.Read the guide Explainer9 min readApartment Admin Fees: What They Cover, Where They Are Restricted and How Multifamily Operators Disclose ThemAn apartment admin fee is a one-time charge for processing a new lease, separate from the application fee and the security deposit. No federal law bans it, but the FTC's Greystar order sets the benchmark: disclose it before taking any payment. California treats it as security, Massachusetts bars it at move-in, and Illinois restricts related lease fees.Read the guide
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Compliance360 Fee Transparency

Which apartment fees must appear in advertised rent, where they must appear and under which law: FTC, all-in pricing states and city rules, each linked to its primary source.

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Compliance360 Fee Transparency report comparing advertised rent with total monthly cost across listings