Tired of your landlord springing extra fees on you at the last minute?
The Seattle City Council will vote Tuesday on a bill that would make it illegal for landlords to charge many spurious “junk” fees like pest control charges, pet rent, technology fees, and other miscellaneous administrative costs. It would also require landlords to give prior notice of any allowable fees when they list their rentals. The Housing, Arts & Civil Rights Committee unanimously passed the bill, which was proposed by Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson and sponsored by chair Dionne Foster, last Monday.
The council committee’s warm reception to throwing junk fees in the garbage is a welcome change from recent conflicts between the mayor’s office and council. Issues like universal school meals and ex-SPD chief Shon Barnes’s ouster exacerbated the tense working relationship in recent weeks.
Passing it Tuesday is a top priority for Wilson as she tries to build momentum for her affordability agenda. If it passes, it could help renters be squeezed just a little less. Several states, including California, Colorado, and Massachusetts, have already taken steps to crack down on these fees. According to a presentation by the mayor’s office, fees can add as much as 10 to 30 percent to a renter’s monthly housing cost.
Under this legislation, there are about a dozen categories of fees landlords would still be allowed to charge. Optional fees, like charges for use of common building amenities, would also be regulated.
In case of violations, landlords could face fines of $750 for the first offense and $1,500 for repeat violations. City Attorney Erika Evans has pledged that her office would enforce the ordinance, which, if passed, would take effect for next July. (But only for new leases. Get ready to move next summer?)
Reform That’s a Long Time Coming
Kate Rubin, co-executive director of tenant advocacy group Be:Seattle, said the legislation is the product of a lengthy consultation process: For months, Mayor Wilson’s office held meetings with landlords, tenants, and other advocates to get broad support and neutralize the opposition. This stakeholdering resulted in a few changes to make it more airtight, including an exemption for landlord-provided insurance fees.
Wilson’s office also conducted a survey of Seattle renters. Of the 8,800 respondents, 34 percent said they paid fees for signing a lease or administrative fees, like that extra $50 a landlord asks for to “process” the rent you paid online while accepting no other method to pay rent.
One of the most tangible and personal “junk fees” is pet rent. Around 38 percent of survey respondents said they had been charged rent for owning a pet. Pet rent, a fixed monthly payment on top of normal rent, would be outlawed under the bill, but landlords could charge a pet deposit to insure against potential damages.
In Seattle, where dogs outnumber children by 45,000, pet rent has struck a nerve. Harper Bizarre, a drag queen who hosted a rally and doggie fashion runway in support of the bill at Cal Anderson Park on July 18, said the $30 a month she spends on rent for her cat, Tax Fraud, rent could cover all his food and treats. (The only tax he recognizes is payable in Churu, which is like kitty GoGurt).
Wes Mills, general secretary of the Transit Riders Union once led by Mayor Wilson, spends $50 a month on rent for his dog, Rainier, in Northgate, and another $50 on other junk fees. It’s a small slice of the $3,600 he pays a month, but it sure feels like his money is “disappearing in the ether,” he says.
“For someone living alone, that animal isn’t a luxury, it’s company, it’s routine, it’s the thing keeping them healthy and well,” Councilmember Alexis Mercedes Rinck writes in a text message to The Stranger. She said pet rent charged rent on companionship.
Pet rent is arguably a case of quintuple dipping by landlords. They can already charge both a general security deposit and pet deposit on top of monthly rent to pay for potential damages. They also often write off thousands of dollars in taxable income under the expectation of depreciation due to tenant wear-and-tear (despite the fact that property prices have actually massively increased).
But some landlords say they’re actually the ones being squeezed by burdensome regulations and high interest rates. Small landlord lobbyist Kevin Schilling of the Rental Housing Association of Washington said not all property owners know how to or choose to write off depreciation. He warned the junk fee ordinance would place an additional bureaucracy on small landlords, which could push them to sell their properties.
“There won’t be any more local, independent owner-operator rental units because the only people who are going to be able to navigate a regulatory environment of this kind of size are going to be the big corporate, private-equity-backed people who have accountants and lawyers and legal teams,” Schilling said.
A 2024 study comparing the housing markets of Seattle and other King County cities suggests added renter protections have not played a significant role in landlords exiting the housing market.
If the bill is passed and signed into law, it will also require funding in the city’s budget to increase department staffing. The city council estimates it will need three additional full-time staff members to help enforce the legislation and educate landlords and tenants about the new rules. This would be paid for by an additional $5.50 to $7.00 annual per-unit fee charged to landlords.
Wilson’s office is also looking at further pro-renter reforms to curb housing costs, including tackling the widespread practice of distributed utility billing. Her office says it is still “working to develop a timeline” on the potential legislation.
With the bill’s unanimous approval in committee, renter advocates are feeling optimistic as it heads to a final vote Tuesday (even detractors like Schilling himself literally said, “It’s gonna pass”). They’re still rallying folks to attend the full council meeting at 2 pm to give public comment.