Late Fees And Move In Fees
Real Prop. Law § 238-a — no late fee until rent is five days late, and then $50 or 5 percent, whichever is less
Five days, then $50 or 5 percent. A landlord may charge a fee for late rent only when the rent has not been paid within five days of its due date, and the fee may not exceed fifty dollars or five percent of the monthly rent, whichever is less.
No application fee, and $20 for the checks. Apart from fees a statute or regulation provides for, a landlord may not charge for processing, reviewing or accepting an application, or demand any other payment before or at the start of the tenancy, except to cover a background check and credit check. That fee is the actual cost or twenty dollars, whichever is less; it is waived for an applicant who provides a check done within the past thirty days, and may be collected only with a copy of the check and the receipt for it.
A fee for a bounced rent check is allowed only if the lease provides for it, and is limited to the landlord's actual costs or the amount the general obligations law sets for a dishonored check, whichever is greater.
A lease clause waiving or limiting the section is void. A cooperative housing corporation charging its own shareholders is treated differently, and may charge up to eight percent of the monthly maintenance fee as a late fee where the proprietary lease provides for one.
Sources for this section (1)
- Real Prop. Law § 238-a — Limitation on fees
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of October 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed New York attorney.