Proposed Philadelphia legislation could ease burden on renters

ByCheryl Mettendorf and Nydia Han WPVI logo
Friday, January 31, 2025
How proposed legislation could ease burden on Philly renters
How proposed legislation could ease burden on Philly renters

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- Help to ease housing costs could be on the way.

Councilmember Rue Landau has introduced a package of new legislation aimed at making the application process less burdensome for renters. It's called the Move-In Affordability Plan.

Landau, who worked as a tenant lawyer for several years, said her plan directly addresses two of the biggest financial barriers that renters face when trying to secure housing: high application fees that can cost as much as $100-$200 and large upfront security deposits.

Landau said the fees are not regulated by state or local law and people often have to pay multiple application fees as they apply to multiple places.

"It could be $700 by the time they're done finding a place to live, and we want to keep that money in people's pockets," she said.

Landau said the Move-In Affordability Plan , among other things, would cap rental application fees at $20, allow renters to provide their own background check if it's from an accredited agency within the last 30 days, and allow renters to pay their security deposits, meaning last month's rent and security in up to four installments.

"The median rent in Philadelphia now is $1,800," said Landau. "So that's $5,400 that you need before you move in."

She said many people might be able to afford the monthly rent but not the big lump sum all at once.

"Spreading it out over four months, just makes it possible for them," said Landau.

Numbers from our 6abc Data Journalism Team show the pain tenants are feeling.

Almost half (48.5%) of renter households are "rent burdened," meaning they spend 30% or more of their household income on rent and more than a quarter (26.2%) of renter households spend half of their income or more on rent.

"People's wages are not going up with the cost of housing," said Landau. "I think that's a really important point."

However, some say the Move-In Affordability Plan will cause landlords to lose money.

We talked to the general counsel for the Homeowners Association of Philadelphia Paul Cohen, who is also a partner with the law firm of Cohen Marraccini.

"And the bottom line is the landlord's not going to take a tenant to court just to collect the security deposit," said Cohen. "So what's going to happen is the landlord's not going to get the security deposit, and then if there's damage to the property. The landlord's going to be out that money."

He said as a result, the proposed legislation could backfire, making it harder for renters to find affordable housing in the city.

"If the city wants to encourage more landlords to come to the city, this is not the way to do it," Cohen said. "This is the way that you're going to get landlords not to want to rent in Philadelphia, not to own property in Philadelphia."

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