The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has announced Invitation Homes, the country’s largest landlord of single-family homes, has agreed to a settlement where the company will turn over $48 million to refund consumers harmed by its deceptive actions.
The company was accused of deceiving renters about lease costs, charging undisclosed junk fees that could total more than $1,700 yearly, failing to inspect homes before residents moved in, and unfairly withholding tenants’ security deposits when they moved out. Consumers looking for rental houses owned by the company paid mandatory nonrefundable fees – including application fees up to $55 and reservation fees up to $500. Since 2019, Invitation Homes has collected more than $18 million in application fees alone for deceptively priced houses.
According to the FTC complaint, Invitation Homes’ marketing materials promoted that every home the company rents passed a “quality assurance inspection” before renters moved in and that the company provided “24/7 emergency maintenance.” However, there were numerous instances in which renters arrived at a home to find it in significant disrepair, and the FTC noted that residents in 33,328 properties submitted at least one work order within the first week after they moved in between 2018 and 2023.
Furthermore, Invitation Homes was accused of unfair eviction practices, including during the Covid-19 pandemic when both national and many state restrictions on evictions were in place. When the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)’s eviction moratorium was in place, Invitation Homes intentionally steered its renters away from filing the CDC declaration required to prevent renters from being evicted, instead encouraging renters to complete the company’s own “Hardship Affidavit.” Despite its name, this document provided no eviction protection to renters.
“Invitation Homes, the nation’s largest single-family home landlord, preyed on tenants through a variety of unfair and deceptive tactics, from saddling people with hidden fees and unjustly withholding security deposits to misleading people about eviction policies during the pandemic and even pursuing eviction proceedings after people had moved out,” said FTC Chairwoman Lina M. Khan. “No American should pay more for rent or be kicked out of their home because of illegal tactics by corporate landlords. The FTC will continue to use all our tools to protect renters from unlawful business practices.”
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