Gen Z Man charged an extra $20 fee every time he pays rent: “Violation”

The internet is outraged after a college student revealed that he’s charged a $20 transaction fee every time he pays his rent.

The Redditor, u/vinniehat, 20, from New York, took to the subreddit “mildly infuriating” to share his frustration over his off-campus apartment‘s mandatory processing charge.

“In order to pay online, I have to use go through their payment processor which supposedly can charge a fee from anywhere of $1 to $20,” he told Newsweek.

The post quickly struck a chord, receiving 32,000 upvotes as others shared similar experiences and advice.

The post read: “I’m about to pay for the first month’s rent and no matter how I pay, their payment processor is going to charge me $20 just to pay for rent. Unbelievable.”

The Hidden Cost of Paying Rent

While it might seem outrageous, the practice of charging tenants a convenience fee to pay rent—especially via credit or debit card—is surprisingly common in large apartment complexes.

Fees for using a credit card can range from 2.5 percent to 2.95 percent of the rent, according to Greystar, a leading property management company. These fees are typically passed directly to the tenant and are meant to cover transaction costs charged by payment processors. For a $1,000 rent payment, that’s an extra $25 to $29 each month.

Expert Insight

Arvand Sabetian, founder of Ziprent, says this model is becoming more common in large, institutional apartment complexes and student housing.

“At Ziprent, we believe renters shouldn’t be penalized simply for the act of paying rent,” Sabetian told Newsweek. “Unfortunately, these platform, convenience, or processing fees have become increasingly common.”

He explained that while the legality of such fees varies by state, many renters don’t realize there are no-fee payment options available—such as Automated Clearing House (ACH) transfers or mailing checks.

States like California, New York, Oregon, and Washington have enacted regulations to limit or prevent these fees. However, others like Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Nevada, and Texas have not.

“Ziprent prioritizes transparency in our operations and provide multiple payment options with no added fees. We encourage landlords and operators to do the same because rent should be predictable and not padded with unnecessary hidden platform, convenience, or processing fees,” Sabetian said.

Jeff Lichtenstein, CEO and Broker at Echo Fine Properties, likened the issue to the rising number of hidden charges in other industries with Newsweek.

He explained how he recently dined out a restaurant and was charged a 3 percent charge for a credit card fee.

“This occurring in real estate is no different than the server for anything sticking the 20-30 percent tip credit card machine in your face at a restaurant or Starbucks. It’s become so successful in that industry that everyone else feels they can try it,” he said.

He added that such tactics exploded during the pandemic, with additional charges creeping into everything from food delivery to breakfast items.

“Consumers and rental agents need to be trained to look for this upfront and negotiate it out of the contract,” he emphasized.

The Case for Checks

Despite the digital age, nearly half of U.S. renters still pay by check, according to Multifamily Dive. Many do so to avoid the mounting processing fees tied to credit card or third-party platform payments.

Digital payments may offer convenience, but they often come with added costs. Some landlords even steer tenants toward platforms that benefit the property owner but leave the tenant with extra fees.

Since his post, the Redditor found out he can pay the bill via check to avoid paying an online fee each time.

Reddit Reacts

Unsurprisingly, Redditors had a lot to say.

“It may be annoying at first, but I would seriously consider writing paper checks for this. like, I make $20 an hour and I would not want to work an hour of my life for ‘the privilege’ of paying rent lol,” said one user.

Another shared: “Oh my god I forgot about that. My HOA fees this year are through a site that wants an extra $20 for the convenience of paying online and I just dug out my old a checkbook from like 15 years and 6 addresses ago cause a 50 cent stamp is a lot better than $20 bull c***. I totally forgot you could bill pay a check from the online site. Thank you!!!”

Others offered tips. “I set up my landlord as a bill in online bill pay. The bank mails a check to their home every month. No fee and I don’t have to keep checks. I also hated the payment processor fees,” one user explained.

Another revealed a bit of protest in their own method: “In my last lease the payment methods accepted was included, and it noted that appfolio has a processing fee. It also said I could drop off checks in person, and they hated it but it was worth the % processing fee so I kept annoying them monthly.”

“The service my landlord uses to collect rent payments started charging $2.50 out of nowhere. Now my landlord sends checks every month for the amount of $2.50 to reimburse since they no longer accept paper checks,” said another user.

“Seems easier to lower rent by 2 bucks, but it’s nice that your landlord is being decent about it,” suggested another user.

“That would be in violation of the law probably,” shared another user.

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