A bipartisan coalition of 26 state attorneys general sent the FTC a letter last week urging the agency to move forward with rulemaking that would require residential landlords to disclose all fees upfront in listings and advertisements. The letter, submitted in response to the FTC's request for public comment, asks the agency to set a clear federal baseline while preserving state authority to regulate landlord-tenant relationships.

The states described the problem in familiar terms: landlords advertising low monthly rents and then layering on mandatory fees late in the application or lease-signing process. The letter called this a "bait-and-switch" practice that harms renters and disadvantages landlords who are transparent about total costs from the start.

This FTC initiative did not emerge from a vacuum. The agency has been active in this space, most recently settling with multifamily housing giant Greystar in December 2025 for $24 million over hidden fee allegations. The rental housing push fits within the FTC's broader campaign against junk fees across industries, including live event ticketing, short-term rentals, automobile sales, and beyond. (If you represent a residential property manager and haven't revisited your fee disclosure practices in light of those settlements, now is a good time.)

The AGs' letter makes a point worth noting for multi-state operators: individual states have tried various approaches, including capping screening and late fees, mandating early disclosure of all fees, and requiring payment methods that don't carry processing fees. But state-by-state enforcement has its limits when the landlord operates nationally. The letter argues that a federal minimum standard would fill gaps that fragmented state law cannot.

One tension in the letter is worth watching: the states want preemption protection. They support a federal floor, but they don't want the federal government setting a ceiling that displaces stronger state protections. How the FTC handles that balance if it actually proposes a rule will likely be a flashpoint.