If you have ever tried to rent an apartment in New York City, you already know the pain. You find a nice place. You are excited. And then someone hands you a bill for a "broker fee" — sometimes as much as one month's rent, or even 15% of your yearly rent. The strange part? You never even asked for a broker. The landlord hired that person, not you. But somehow, you were the one paying.
That old and unfair system has now changed. A new law called the FARE Act (Fairness in Apartment Rental Expenses Act) has flipped the rule. In simple words: whoever hires the broker, pays the broker. If the landlord calls the broker, the landlord pays. If you, the renter, call your own broker to help you search, then you pay. This one small change is saving thousands of renters a huge amount of money, and in this article, we will explain everything about it in the easiest way possible.
What Was Life Like Before the FARE Act?
For many, many years, New York City was one of just two big cities in America (the other being Boston) where this strange broker fee system was normal. According to Marketplace, landlords would hire a broker to advertise their empty apartment, and even if a renter found that same apartment on their own through a website like Zillow, the renter still had to pay the broker's fee — a cost that usually landed somewhere between one month's rent and 15% of a full year's rent.
Add that broker fee on top of the first month's rent and a security deposit, and moving into a new home in NYC became incredibly expensive. According to Marketplace, renters were paying close to $13,000 just to get the keys to their new apartment. According to the StreetEasy Blog, the average upfront moving cost in NYC — including these broker fees — was around $12,951.
Think about that for a second. That is money many people simply did not have sitting around. It meant people stayed stuck in apartments they didn't like, because moving was just too costly. It meant renters with lower incomes were hit the hardest, since they had the least extra cash to spare. The whole system felt backwards — you pay for a service you never asked for, provided to someone else.
So What Exactly Is the FARE Act?
The FARE Act is a law passed by the New York City Council. It is officially known as Local Law 119 of 2024, and according to the NYC Council page from Council Member Chi Ossé, the law makes it illegal to charge a tenant for the fees of a broker that was hired by the landlord.
The law officially became active on June 11, 2025. According to the city's own consumer protection agency, the Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (DCWP), as of that date, neither a landlord nor a landlord's agent is allowed to charge a tenant a fee for the broker's services.
Here is the simple version of the rule:
- If the landlord hires a broker (this includes any "listing agent" who posts the apartment online), the landlord must pay that broker. The tenant cannot be charged.
- If you, the tenant, choose to hire your own broker to help search for an apartment, then you pay that broker's fee. This part hasn't changed — hiring your own broker is still allowed, and still your responsibility.
According to the DCWP, there is also an important detail about listings you see online. If a broker posts a listing for an apartment, the law assumes that the broker did so with the landlord's permission — which means that broker is working for the landlord, not for you. So even if that broker later tries to say "I'm representing you, the tenant," that is not allowed under the FARE Act.
No More Being Forced to Use a Specific Broker
Before this law, some landlords would basically force renters to go through a particular broker to even see an apartment, and that broker would then demand a fee. The FARE Act shuts this down completely.
According to the DCWP FAQ, landlords are not allowed to make renting an apartment conditional on the tenant using a specific agent. The law also stops landlords from forcing tenants to work with something called a "dual agent" — this is a broker who claims to represent both the landlord and the tenant at the same time. No one is allowed to make hiring a broker a requirement for renting a home.
This matters a lot, because it removes the pressure. In the old system, a renter could feel trapped: "If I don't pay this broker, I lose the apartment." Now, that pressure tactic is against the law.
Landlords Must Be Honest and Upfront About All Fees
Money surprises are one of the worst parts of apartment hunting. You think you know the price, and then extra fees keep appearing. The FARE Act tries to fix this too, by forcing landlords and their agents to be completely open about costs.
According to the DCWP, any advertisement or listing for a rental apartment must clearly show all the fees a tenant will have to pay. On top of that, landlords or their agents must give tenants a written, itemized list of every single fee before the tenant signs anything. The tenant has to sign this list, and the landlord must keep a copy for three years, while also giving a copy to the tenant.
This means no more guessing games. Before you agree to rent a place, you should be able to see, in writing, every cost involved — not just discover extra charges after you've already committed.
Around $5,500 Back in Renters' Pockets
So how much money does this actually save people? While the exact number depends on the apartment and the old fee percentage, many housing experts and news reports point to savings in the range of thousands of dollars per move — often described as around $5,500 for a typical renter who would have otherwise paid a broker fee of one month's rent or more.
According to DeFalco Realty, before this law, NYC renters routinely paid broker fees equal to 12–15% of their yearly rent — often somewhere between $5,000 and $8,000 — for a service they never even asked for. Now, in most everyday rental situations, that specific cost simply disappears from a renter's moving budget.
This is a genuinely big deal for everyday people. Removing this one large expense means renters can move more freely — to be closer to a new job, to leave a bad living situation, or simply to find a better home — without needing to somehow save up thousands of extra dollars just to cover someone else's broker.
Did Rents Go Up Because of This Law?
Naturally, when a law removes a cost for tenants, people ask: won't landlords just find another way to charge for it? This was one of the biggest worries when the FARE Act was being discussed.
According to Marketplace, in the first week right after the law took effect, there actually were some noticeable jumps in asking rents, and fewer new listings appeared. One renter interviewed by Marketplace said she saw saved apartment listings jump by hundreds of dollars — one even by around $1,000 — right after the law changed.
However, according to the same Marketplace report, this spike did not last. A senior economist at StreetEasy named Kenny Lee said that after the initial adjustment period, the NYC rental market had settled down and stayed fairly stable. The early jump looked like a short-term reaction from landlords and brokers getting used to the new rules, not a permanent trend.
That said, it's worth being honest: the law is not perfect, and some landlords have tried workarounds. According to DeFalco Realty, the city's consumer protection agency received over 1,125 complaints in the first several months after the law began, and some listings tried adding new charges labeled as "management," "administrative," or "technology" fees — sometimes totaling thousands of dollars — to try to make up for the lost broker fee. So while the law is a big win overall, renters still need to stay alert and read every fee carefully.
What Happens If Someone Breaks This Law?
The FARE Act isn't just a suggestion — it comes with real consequences for landlords or brokers who ignore it.
According to Cole Schotz law firm, violating the law can lead to fines of up to $2,000, and violators may also have to give back any illegal fees they collected. The law is enforced by the DCWP through official hearings, but importantly, renters also have another option.
According to the DCWP, the law gives individuals the right to sue in civil court if they believe the law was broken. This means a renter isn't only relying on the city government to act — they can personally take legal action to get their money back if they were wrongly charged.
If you ever feel you were illegally charged a broker fee in NYC, you can file a complaint with the DCWP directly, or call 311. According to the StreetEasy Blog, it helps to gather as much proof as possible — screenshots of the listing, messages with the agent, the date you saw the listing, the listing's web address, and the agent's contact information.
Was This Law Challenged in Court?
Big changes like this rarely go unchallenged, and the FARE Act was no exception. According to Cole Schotz, the Real Estate Board of New York (REBNY) — a powerful group representing the real estate industry — challenged the law in court. They argued that it violated free speech rights for businesses and that it clashed with state law.
However, a lower court disagreed and upheld the law, and a request to pause the law while the case continued was denied. This means that, as of now, the FARE Act stands as fully valid and enforceable across New York City.
Does It Apply Even If You Signed Your Lease Before the Law Started?
This is a common and important question. According to the NYC Council page, the answer is generally yes — a landlord or broker cannot charge a tenant a fee for the landlord's broker after June 11, 2025, even if the lease itself was signed earlier, as long as that fee wasn't already paid before the law took effect.
According to Cole Schotz, the law applies retroactively to any unpaid broker fees — meaning if you signed your lease before the law started but hadn't yet paid the broker fee, that fee can no longer legally be collected from you.
The Bigger Picture
Beyond just saving money, housing experts believe the FARE Act could genuinely change how the New York City rental market works. According to the StreetEasy Blog, lowering this one huge upfront cost is expected to help create a healthier rental market overall — one where renters feel free to move more often, which in turn means more apartments become available, and more opportunities open up for everyone, including brokers themselves.
For years, high upfront moving costs quietly trapped people in apartments that no longer suited them — maybe the commute got worse, maybe the family grew, maybe the rent felt too high for what they were getting. But moving felt financially impossible because of that one extra, unfair fee. The FARE Act directly targets that problem.
Final Thoughts
The FARE Act is one of the most renter-friendly changes New York City has seen in years. In simple terms, it makes sure people only pay for services they actually asked for. If you didn't hire the broker, you don't have to pay the broker — plain and simple.
Yes, the transition hasn't been completely smooth. Some landlords tried small rent increases or sneaky new fees to make up for the loss. But overall, the law has held strong in court, complaints are being tracked, and renters now have real legal power to fight back if someone tries to break the rules.
If you're apartment hunting in New York City today, remember this: always ask who hired the broker, always demand a full written list of every fee before you sign anything, and never let anyone pressure you into paying for a service you never asked for. The FARE Act is on your side — use it.
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