End Junk Fees for Renters Act

1) WHAT HAPPENED: Representative Frost (D-FL) introduced HR 4100 on June 24, 2025. The bill was referred to the Committee on Financial Services and the Committee on Veterans' Affairs. On December 19, 2025, it was referred to the Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity. The bill has 24 Democratic cosponsors, all from the House. A companion bill (S2148) exists in the Senate. The bill remains in early committee stage with no hearings scheduled. 2) THE MONEY TRAIL: This bill does not authorize or appropriate any federal funds (funding_amount_usd = 0). It imposes regulatory restrictions on private fee structures. The mechanism is a direct statutory ban on application and screening fees, and a cap on late fees at 3% of monthly rent with a mandatory 15-day grace period before any late fee can be imposed. Additional disclosure requirements add compliance costs but are likely minor ($500K-$2M per REIT initially). 3) STRUCTURAL WINNERS AND LOSERS: LOSERS are every large multifamily REIT that relies on fee income from applications, screening, and late payments. $AVB, $EQR, $MAA, $CPT, $UDR face a direct revenue reduction of 0.5-1.0% of total revenue. $AVB and $EQR are the most exposed given their national portfolios and centralized fee structures. WINNERS are tenants and tenant advocacy groups, but there is no public company beneficiary. Property management software providers ($YARDI is private, no public pure-play) could see demand for compliance tools, but no public company captures this directly. 4) REAL MARKET DATA ANALYSIS: Despite this legislative overhang, the five apartment REITs have rallied significantly in the last 30 days. $AVB ($183.34) is up 12.24% over 30 days, $EQR ($65.20) is up 10.23%, $MAA ($128.00) is up 4.81%, $CPT ($105.08) is up 7.6%, and $UDR ($35.93) is up 6.36%. This rally is likely driven by broader real estate sector rotation (falling interest rate expectations) rather than company-specific fundamentals. The 7-day trends (AVB +6.36%, EQR +4.72%, MAA +1.86%, CPT +3.27%, UDR +3.34%) suggest continued momentum. This means the market is NOT pricing in the HR 4100 risk — creating a potential vulnerability when/if the bill advances. 5) TIMELINE: The bill is early-stage in a Republican-controlled House (119th Congress). With only Democratic cosponsors and no Republican support, passage is highly unlikely in this Congress. The next meaningful action would be a committee hearing (not yet scheduled). If the 2026 midterm elections shift control, the bill's prospects increase dramatically. For now, the immediate risk is low, but the bill represents a policy blueprint that could gain traction in future Congresses.