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Renters across Massachusetts are entering the home stretch to find new apartments as the all-important Sept. 1 move-in date looms. And for the first time in years, they’re getting a break on fees despite lobbying from a dissident faction in the real estate industry.
The Legislature had wrapped a measure into Gov. Maura Healey’s annual budget banning landlords from making tenants pay the apartment broker’s fee if they were the one who engaged the broker or agent in the first place.
Such fees traditionally amounted to a month’s rent – $3,245 for a two-bedroom in Greater Boston, according to listings site and brokerage Boston Pads – and came on top of first month’s rent, a security deposit and sometimes the last month’s rent. Supporters of the idea noted that total up-front cost of a new apartment could in some cases amount to one-third of a tenant’s annual rent bill, all at once.
In a statement issued by her office this morning, Healey touted the measure as a step towards making rental housing more affordable. The law went into effect today.
“Housing costs are already way too high and moving is already way too complicated. This new law will save renters thousands of dollars each time they move and make the rental process more fair and less burdensome,” she said. “We’re here to support renters, landlords and brokers through this change to make sure everybody knows how they will be impacted and what their rights are. I’m grateful to the Legislature for approving this change and for their strong partnership in our ongoing work to make housing more affordable in Massachusetts. We wish everyone good luck this moving season, stay safe and avoid moving trucks on Storrow Drive!”
The Greater Boston Real Estate Board had backed the new legislation, but the Small Property Owner’s Association and several prominent, Boston-area rental industry executives launched a last-ditch lobbying campaign in recent weeks to get lawmakers to postpone its effective date until after the fall lease-up period. They cited confusion about the law’s requirements, the short time frame available to revise contracts and the disruption to business models in their push.
That campaign, though, got little traction with leaders in the Legislature.
“Starting today, renters in Massachusetts will not be forced to pay thousands of dollars in fees for a service that they themselves never contracted in the first place,” House Speaker Ron Mariano said in a statement released by Healey’s office. “The House remains committed to ensuring that state government does all that it can to bring down the cost of housing here in Massachusetts, and we’re grateful to Governor Healey and our partners in the Senate for their shared commitment to that goal.”
