Mayor Adams raises concerns over real estate broker fee bill set to get

Mayor Eric Adams on Tuesday raised concerns about City Council legislation that would relieve most renters from having to pay real estate broker fees, a day before the bill is expected to pass the chamber.

During his weekly off-topic news conference on Nov. 12, Adams said that while he agrees with the premise of the legislation — known as the FARE (Fairness in Apartment Rentals) Act — he believes it will have unintended consequences. The FARE Act, if enacted, would require whomever hires a real estate broker to pay the fee, a cost usually passed onto the tenant. 

Proponents of the bill argue that it would eliminate a major upfront financial burden for renters, but Adams contends it would leave landlords having to pay for brokers themselves, and then building that cost into tenants’ monthly rent to make up for the loss.

Hizzoner said that would effectively transform broker fees from a one-time cost into a permanent rent increase for tenants.

“Some of the ideals collide with the reality of the operationalizing implementation,” Adams said. “We got to get it right, make sure that we reach the goals that we’re looking for, and at the same time don’t hurt small property owners and try to get some relief to some of those who are trying to live in the city … I think the bill has the right intention, but sometimes good intentions do not get the results you’re looking for.”

Adams — who has vetoed several major pieces of council legislation since taking office — cast the bill as a “knee-jerk reaction.” Still, he has not indicated whether he will veto the FARE Act if it passes and comes to his desk.

The bill currently has 33 council co-sponsors including Public Advocate Jumaane Williams, who does not get to vote on legislation.

While the 32 voting co-sponsors are two short of a 34-vote super majority needed to override a mayoral veto, council members who do not sponsor a bill often end up voting for it anyway.

Adams said that while he has not communicated with Council Speaker Adrienne Adams on the bill, his director of intergovernmental affairs, Tiffany Rhaspberry, has been in “conversations on both sides of this issue to try and find some middle ground.”

Even so, a council source told amNewYork Metro that the administration has not raised concerns about the bill directly to them.