Progress Residential and its owner, Pretium Partners, will pay $49.75 million to settle charges that the company hid fees, misled renters about home conditions and kept security deposits it should have returned, the Federal Trade Commission announced on Nov. 6. The Progress Residential settlement is the largest enforcement matter against a landlord in the commission’s history, the agency said.
Progress manages more than 90,000 single-family rental homes in 17 states. The FTC filed the case with Arizona, Colorado, Indiana and Utah in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, and the commission voted 2-0 to authorize it. Spread across those homes, the payment works out to about $553 a home, a calculation from the two figures that says nothing about how the money will be distributed.
What the FTC Says Progress Did
The complaint alleges that advertised rents left out mandatory monthly fees, including “smart home” and “utility management” charges, and that Progress described a renter’s insurance exemption fee inadequately. The FTC says those fees cost renters tens of millions of dollars since at least 2021.
The agency also alleges that homes marketed as “move-in ready” often needed serious maintenance, repair or cleaning. It alleges Progress withheld some or all of tenants’ deposits for normal wear and tear, for conditions that existed before the tenant arrived and for repairs the company owed, and that many renters never received the itemized statement they were promised within 30 days of moving out. Form contracts, the complaint says, barred renters from making negative comments. These are allegations, and a settlement does not carry a finding that the company broke the law.
How the $49.75 Million Divides
Progress and Pretium will pay $48.5 million to the FTC for refunds to harmed consumers and $1.25 million to Arizona. The FTC’s order is a proposed stipulated order, and it takes effect when the judge approves and signs it.
The order would require Progress to advertise the true total monthly rent, including every mandatory recurring fee, more prominently than any other price. It would bar the company from misrepresenting inspections, require a deposit-refund process with uniform withholding standards and bar deductions for normal wear and tear. Progress would also have to send an itemized statement of deductions within 30 days, or sooner where state law sets a shorter deadline, and could not use standardized nondisparagement clauses.
What the Company and the FTC Said
The complaint alleges that most of the conduct happened under prior management, and the FTC says the new management has moved to fix the problems. That is the company’s best case: the money buys a clean slate for owners who say they inherited the practices.
Christopher Mufarrige, director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection, said consumers searching for housing should have access to straightforward information. He added that the FTC is monitoring the rental housing market and will continue to act where appropriate.
The most consequential term is the first one. A rule that puts the all-in monthly price ahead of the base rent changes how a listing reads before a tenant ever tours a home, and it applies to 90,000 homes at once. The settlement binds the company only after the Northern District of Georgia judge signs the order.
