The End Junk Fees for Renters Act would prohibit landlords from charging tenants several types of fees commonly associated with rental applications and tenancy. Specifically, the bill bans application fees, tenant screening fees, and requires that late fees be credited against the next month's rent rather than kept by the landlord. The legislation also restricts landlords from using credit scores or nationwide consumer reports when evaluating potential tenants, and requires landlords to disclose key information to tenants before signing a lease, including total monthly costs, past litigation history, maintenance issues, and a decade of rent increase history. The bill applies to rental units that receive federal housing assistance or are secured by federally-backed mortgage loans, and enforcement would fall to the Department of Housing and Urban Development, Department of Veterans Affairs, Department of Agriculture, and the Federal Housing Finance Agency depending on the type of federal backing. Additionally, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau would have 180 days to define "junk fees" in rental housing and determine that reporting unpaid junk fees to credit agencies constitutes an unfair debt collection practice.
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