Renters face a new affordability threat: the fee-stuffed lease

Apartment hunting has always required math. But for many renters, the advertised rent is now only the starting point.

A new Guardian investigation finds that tenants at apartments operated by Greystar, the nation’s largest apartment owner and manager, are facing a growing menu of add-on charges — including boiler management fees, lifestyle fees, trash fees, pest-control fees, payment fees, pet fees and other monthly costs that can make the true price of an apartment far higher than the rent shown in ads.

The company denies wrongdoing and says fees are disclosed in leases and rental materials. But tenants, housing lawyers and public officials say the extra charges can be confusing, hard to compare, and in some cases financially devastating.

Why it matters

• Renters may be paying far more than the advertised rent once mandatory and variable fees are added.
• Some tenants say unpaid fees can trigger late charges, legal fees and even eviction risks.
• Federal and state regulators are now scrutinizing rental “junk fees” as part of a broader affordability fight.

The rise of the fee-stuffed apartment

The Guardian reported that it found at least 125 different named fees in Greystar leases, court records and rental listings. The fees appeared in Washington, D.C., and in all 42 states where Greystar had listings on its website.

Some fees were small. Others were not. The investigation found charges for such things as boiler management, stormwater drainage, trash hauling, pest control, payment processing, amenities and pet management.

The problem, critics say, is not simply that landlords charge for services. It is that renters often cannot easily tell what the apartment will actually cost before applying, paying deposits or signing a lease.

That matters in a market where millions of renters are already stretched thin. Harvard’s Joint Center for Housing Studies reported this year that 22.7 million renter households — 49% of all renters — spent more than 30% of their income on rent and utilities in 2024. More than 12 million were severely cost-burdened, spending over half their income on housing.

Fees can turn an already tight budget into an impossible one.

A rent bill that keeps growing

One Nevada renter profiled by the Guardian said she expected to pay $1,598 a month for a two-bedroom apartment at a Greystar-managed complex in Las Vegas. But her bill later reached $1,922.70 — more than $300 above the base rent — after monthly fees and penalty charges were added.

Her lawsuit claims that the fees helped push her toward eviction and homelessness. Greystar denied the allegations in court, saying the lawsuit tried to turn a landlord-tenant accounting dispute into a consumer-fraud class action.

Other tenants described similar frustration. A Colorado renter who became the lead plaintiff in another case said she faced a long list of fees, including trash, pest-control and billing charges. She said the charges left her feeling nickel-and-dimed and unable to understand what was fair until after the fact.

Greystar has said in court filings that the fees were disclosed in leases and allowed under state law.

The disclosure problem

Greystar says it is trying to make pricing clearer. Following a settlement with the Federal Trade Commission and the state of Colorado, the company now lists “total monthly leasing prices” in many rental ads and provides online cost calculators.

But the Guardian found that many listings still include mandatory variable fees that are not folded into the advertised total monthly price. Some are listed as “usage based,” “varies,” or otherwise left without a precise dollar figure.

That can make comparison shopping nearly impossible. A renter may think one apartment is cheaper than another based on rent alone, only to discover after applying that mandatory fees change the calculation.

Housing advocates say that is the heart of the problem: renters need the real monthly price upfront, not a base rent followed by a pile of add-ons.

Regulators are paying attention

Greystar has already been the subject of major enforcement action. In December, the FTC and Colorado announced a $24 million settlement with the company over allegations that it advertised deceptively low rents while failing to disclose mandatory fees upfront. Greystar did not admit wrongdoing.

The settlement required Greystar to advertise a total monthly leasing price that includes mandatory fixed fees and to disclose fees more clearly before collecting application payments or deposits. But the settlement still allows some charges — including optional fees and mandatory variable utility costs — to remain outside the headline total.

The FTC has since opened a broader rulemaking process on rental housing fees. The agency is asking whether new rules are needed to stop unfair or deceptive rental fee practices across the apartment market.

The issue extends beyond one company. The FTC has said misleading rental pricing is not limited to Greystar, and housing advocates argue that fee-heavy leases have become increasingly common across large apartment operators.

Why renters are vulnerable

Rental fees can be especially harmful because housing is not an ordinary purchase. A consumer can walk away from an overpriced concert ticket or airline seat. But renters often face application deadlines, moving costs, school boundaries, job commutes and limited available units.

Once a renter has paid application fees or deposits, the pressure to accept the lease grows. By the time the full fee structure becomes clear, backing out may mean losing money and starting the search over.

Fees also complicate household budgeting. Renters may plan around the advertised rent but then face monthly charges for trash, pest control, utilities, billing administration, payment processing, pets, parking, amenities or other services.

In some leases reviewed by the Guardian, unpaid fees can be treated like unpaid rent. That means a dispute over fees can potentially become an eviction threat.

What renters should do before signing

Renters should not rely on the advertised rent alone. Before applying or paying a deposit, ask the landlord or property manager for a full written breakdown of every required monthly charge, every one-time move-in charge, and every possible move-out charge.

Ask which fees are mandatory, which are optional, which are fixed, and which vary from month to month. If a fee is “usage based,” ask how it is calculated and whether the landlord can provide recent typical charges for similar units.

Pay special attention to payment fees. Some buildings restrict how tenants can pay rent and then charge extra for online payments, processing, billing administration or cashier’s check alternatives.

Pet owners should also ask for the full cost of keeping an animal in the unit, including pet rent, deposits, one-time pet fees, registration fees and DNA waste-testing fees.

Most important: get the answers in writing.

The bottom line

The rent consumers see in an apartment ad may no longer be the rent they actually pay.

For renters, that means the old question — “Can I afford the rent?” — is no longer enough. The better question is: “What is the total monthly cost of living here, including every mandatory fee?”

Until rental listings are required to show one clear, all-in price, renters will need to do the math themselves — and be ready to walk away from a lease that hides too much behind the word “fee.”