‘Junk fees’ are driving up the cost of renting in Howard County, advocates say

Howard County already has some of Maryland’s highest rents, but hidden so-called “junk fees” for Wi-Fi, trash disposal and Amazon package deliveries that some landlords tuck into tenants’ monthly bills are exacerbating the county’s housing affordability crisis.

That’s the conclusion of research by a local advocacy group, which sent canvassers to knock on 12,000 doors this year and interview Howard renters about their living arrangements and expenses. The public health nonprofit Horizon Foundation and its partners are still analyzing the data but preliminarily found many renters were routinely charged excessive junk fees on top of their base rent.

Horizon officials want the Howard County Council to adopt a legislative fix they say would make it easier for tenants to file complaints and strengthen protections against bad actor landlords. The organization, which also has provided financial support to The Banner, is calling for the county to establish a single office to handle issues related to rental properties and tenant-landlord disputes over issues like junk fees.

“We hear of these very questionable charges that renters were not told about up front that are materializing out of nowhere,” said Kristina Gray-Akpa, a senior program officer for the Horizon Foundation. “It’s hard not to think this is another way for landlords to get money out of tenants.”

Junk fees — which are often obligatory, undisclosed or arbitrary — have proliferated in the private rental market across the country in recent years and disproportionately impact renters of color and those with low incomes, according to the National Consumer Law Center.

Laws limiting some fees have passed in 25 states, including Maryland. However, the strongest protections for Marylanders exist, for now, at the local level, Gray-Akpa said.

Howard County code states that tenants are required to pay only rent, security deposits, application fees and utility services that are explicitly listed in their leases.

Canvassers spoke with residents of Laurel who were unable to opt out of a “trash valet” fee for staff to move their garbage to the curb. An Ellicott City resident was charged fees for paying rent online and for a parking permit even though they did not own a car. A Columbia resident described paying a dumpster fee even though they were hauling their own trash.

Some landlords don’t know the law, Gray-Akpa said, and many tenants don’t know their rights.

That was the case for Columbia resident Regina Lee, who rented happily in the Avalon at Fairway Hills community for about 10 years. In 2023, Lee noticed a new fee in her lease renewal: $64 for Verizon Fios service.

“It was an expense that I didn’t need for something I’m already receiving,” Lee said. “It made no sense to me.”

Lee, who’s retired and receives federal assistance, paid for Wi-Fi through Comcast at a discounted rate of about $30. She asked the rental staff whether she could opt out of the fee but said she was told it was mandatory.

“If I didn’t pay it, it was just like not paying my rent,” Lee said. “I would have been evicted. But to me that was not my rent.”

The following year, Avalon reversed course and allowed residents to opt out of the Verizon service. However, it installed new, keyless locks on each apartment’s front door. Every resident was assigned a random eight- or nine-digit code, which was difficult to remember and led to residents getting locked out, Lee said.

The 70-year-old, who uses a wheelchair, contacted management several times for help getting back into her unit and was charged $100 each time, she said.

A representative for the Avalon at Fairway Hills community and its parent company, AvalonBay Communities, did not respond to messages requesting comment.

“We don’t know how to fight for what we need,” Lee said. “Some people know they have an issue, but they don’t have a voice to express what’s going on.”

Some renters have successfully challenged junk fees in the courts. This year, a Baltimore judge awarded $250,000 in damages to a tenant in a junk fees case, ruling that his corporate landlord had taken advantage of him.

Howard renters who wish to file complaints against their landlords face challenges in figuring out which department, office or agency handles their specific complaint, Gray-Akpa said. For example, junk fees complaints likely would fall to the county’s Office of Consumer Protection, while discrimination cases are handled by the Office of Human Rights & Equity, she said.

“It’s really complex,” Gray-Akpa said. “The average renter does not know how to dig into state or countywide legislation to know what their rights are.”

At a recent renter town hall hosted by the Horizon Foundation, nonprofit officials discussed establishing a unified office of landlord-tenant affairs similar to one in neighboring Montgomery County. It would serve as a one-stop shop for all issues related to rental properties.

Aaron Greenfield, director of government affairs for the Maryland Multi-Housing Association, which represents landlords statewide, called the idea of creating another office a waste of taxpayer dollars.

Howard County’s consumer protections office is one of the most aggressive in the state when it comes to enforcement, Greenfield said.

He suggested Horizon’s efforts would be better directed toward educating renters to understand their rights and the process for challenging needless fees.

These days, Lee, who attended the foundation’s town hall, is shopping for a new apartment in Columbia that better suits her needs as she ages, but she’s found others also charge mandatory fees for Wi-Fi as part of the rent.

She asked Avalon staff what prompted them to allow residents to opt out in hopes she could convince a future landlord to do the same. No one would give her an answer, she said.