Seattle mayor wants to ban rental ‘junk fees'

Mayor Katie Wilson wants to ban so-called junk fees that may be tucked into rental agreements under a proposal her office transmitted to the Seattle City Council this week.

The bill lays out a specific list of fees that landlords are allowed to charge renters. Anything not explicitly mentioned would be banned.

The most standard fees would still be permissible - for security, utility surcharges, late rent payments, key replacement, bounced checks and parking.

But fees for things like pet rent, mail, in-unit appliances, use of checks or money orders to pay rent and use of the common area would be disallowed.

"When you go to rent an apartment and you see the sticker price of your monthly rent, and then you sign your lease and you find that in the fine print there are all kinds of obscure fees that you're also on the hook for, that's not a good feeling," Wilson said. "They add this layer of unpredictability, lack of transparency, and cost that renters are finding really challenging."

The proposal is, in some ways, more about transparency than it is affordability. It would require up-front disclosure of all fees. Wilson acknowledged it's possible those fees could be tacked on to the cost of rent.

But, she argued, that alone would be a win. Having a fuller picture of the true cost would lead to more informed decisions for renters and, possibly, more open competition among landlords.

"Some of that will surely happen, she said of the fees being folded into rent, "but I think that's a better situation where there's that transparency."

Wilson has long forecast she would propose such a prohibition. Her office included a question on fees in its survey of renters and has consistently raised the issue in public.

She launched a stakeholder process earlier this year with tenants, tenant-rights groups and landlords.

Angie Gerrald, who owns and rents several houses in north Seattle and co-founded Seattle Grassroots Landlords, was invited to attend. While she appreciated the invite, she questioned the weight of her input.

She said the proposal represented "new landmines and booby traps" in the rental housing space.

"It just sends the message that Seattle is getting futzy and complicated," she said. "If you want to operate a rental there's going to be more fees and changes to the laws constantly."

But Kate Rubin, co-executive director of the renter advocacy organization Be:Seattle and member of the Seattle Renter's Commission, said it will prevent tenants from renting a place they can't ultimately afford.

"Renters really need to know up front how much we're paying out of pocket before we get in over our heads, she said.

Fees in rental agreements have been attracting more attention lately. Greystar, the largest owner and manager of apartments in the U.S., is facing a slew of lawsuits from tenants in Colorado, California, Nevada and Massachusetts over fees and, in December, agreed to pay $24 million to resolve allegations its advertised rents were misleading, the Guardian reported. Greystar denies the allegations and did not admit fault in the settlement.

Before taking office, Wilson was an advocate for stronger tenant protections, including some the city has since considered rolling back.

This latest proposal comes in the context of new caps on rent increases passed by the Washington Legislature in 2025. That law limits some fees as well, but Wilson said it could incentivize landlords to seek add-ons outside of standard rent.

"It creates that predictability and stability and transparency," she said of the proposal.

San Diego is considering its own cap on fees.

Seattle already caps certain move-in fees, including the size of security and pet deposits, and screening and cleaning fees can't exceed 10% of one month's rent.

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This story was originally published July 6, 2026 at 6:35 AM.