The NYC Rental Application Fee Cap: $20 Is the Ceiling, Not the Fee

In New York, a landlord cannot charge a processing fee to apply for an apartment. The only application charge the statute allows is the actual cost of a background check and a credit check, and that charge cannot exceed $20.

What the $20 is

Real Property Law § 238-a, as posted by the New York Senate and current through the October 17, 2025 revision, says the cumulative fee for those checks is the actual cost or twenty dollars, whichever is less. If the checks cost $8, the legal charge is $8. Twenty dollars is a ceiling, not a flat fee the owner is entitled to collect.

The fee has to be waived if you provide a background check or credit check conducted within the past 30 days. The owner also cannot collect the fee unless they give you a copy of the report and the receipt or invoice from the company that ran it.

What is not an application fee

The same section bars any other payment, fee, or charge for processing, reviewing, or accepting an application, and any other charge demanded before or at the beginning of the tenancy, except the check fee just described. A "holding fee," an "administrative fee," or a "processing fee" on top of the $20 is not a separate category the statute creates. A lease clause that waives this section is void.

This is not the broker-fee question. Who pays a broker is a different law, and this site already has an article on the FARE Act. Do not treat a broker invoice as if it were the $20 credit-check cap, or the reverse.

What to do with it

If you applied somewhere in the last 30 days, keep that report. It is the document that triggers the waiver. If someone asks for more than $20, or for $20 without showing you the invoice, ask them to point to the charge in § 238-a. The text is short.

The Anthem's leasing office can tell you what this building actually collects on an application. The statute is the ceiling. The practice on a given file should match it. Read the law at RPL § 238-a, then schedule a tour or call (212) 684-3222 if you want to see a residence before you apply.