Invitation Homes Settlement: $47.2 Million Refunded to Renters

Who qualifies

• The FTC paid people who paid Invitation Homes for undisclosed fees, or for deceptive and unfair charges, between January 2021 and September 2024.
• The undisclosed fees included mandatory monthly charges for services such as smart home technology, utility management, air filter delivery, and internet packages that were not included in the advertised rent.
• The unfair charges included move-out charges for normal wear and tear, for damage that already existed before the renter moved in, and for renovations that were not the renter's responsibility.
• People who had already received a credit or a refund directly from Invitation Homes for those charges were not eligible for a settlement payment.
• No claim, application, or proof was required. The FTC identified recipients from company records and mailed checks directly.
• Payment came as a paper check that had to be cashed within 90 days of its printed date. That window has closed for the March 2026 mailing.

The Invitation Homes settlement — what happened

1. 1

   September 24, 2024 — the FTC sued the country's largest single-family landlord

   The FTC filed its complaint and a stipulated order in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, case number 1:24-cv-04280-SEG, under FTC File No. 202 3170. The court entered the order on September 27, 2024. The Commission vote was 5-0, with separate statements from Commissioners Melissa Holyoak and Andrew Ferguson. It was the first enforcement action from the FTC's Renters Working Group.

2. 2

   The advertised rent was not the real rent

   According to the complaint, Invitation Homes advertised monthly rates that excluded mandatory fees which could exceed $1,700 a year. Renters could not opt out. They discovered the true price only on receiving their lease — sometimes after signing — having already paid nonrefundable application fees of up to $55 and reservation fees of up to $500 based on the advertised figure. Since 2019 the company collected more than $18 million in application fees alone for deceptively priced houses.

3. 3

   Promised inspections and 24/7 maintenance that did not materialize

   The company marketed that every home passed a "quality assurance inspection" before move-in and that it provided "24/7 emergency maintenance." The FTC alleged that between 2018 and 2023, residents in 33,328 properties filed at least one work order within their first week — for plumbing, electrical, and heating and air conditioning problems — and that some arrived to find mold, broken appliances, rodent feces, and exposed wiring. One employee wrote that complaints from new move-ins about homes not being lease-ready were "both alarming and growing."

4. 4

   Security deposits kept for damage renters did not cause

   The FTC alleged the company systematically withheld deposits by charging renters for normal wear and tear, for damage that predated their tenancy, and even for renovations. An employee would walk the home and log every repair and renovation needed to the renter's account; a different employee who never entered the home then decided what to pass on. The complaint says some regions dropped that review entirely, charging renters for all repairs by default. Between 2020 and 2022, Invitation Homes returned only 39.2% of the security deposit dollars it collected, against a national average of 63.9%.

5. 5

   Eviction practices during the pandemic

   The complaint alleged that while the CDC's eviction moratorium was in force, Invitation Homes steered renters away from filing the CDC declaration that would have protected them and toward the company's own "Hardship Affidavit," which despite its name gave no eviction protection. The FTC also alleged the company began eviction proceedings against renters it knew had already moved out, which in some cases put eviction filings on their tenant screening reports and made renting elsewhere harder.

6. 6

   What the order requires going forward

   Invitation Homes must include all mandatory monthly fees in a home's advertised rental price and disclose whether listed fees are mandatory. It is barred from withholding deposit money for normal wear and tear, and any amount withheld must actually be used to repair the damage it was withheld for. It cannot use deposits to fix pre-existing issues or to fund maintenance and capital improvements unrelated to renter-caused damage. It must tell renters about federal, state, and local eviction assistance programs, and it cannot file evictions against certain renters who have already moved out and said so.

7. 7

   March 2026 — the FTC mailed 444,131 checks

   The FTC distributed more than $47.2 million of the $48 million, an average of about $106 per person. Recipients had 90 days from the date on the check to cash it, so that deadline has passed. Questions go to Rust Consulting at 1-800-804-6915.

8. 8

   Rental junk fees are now an enforcement priority

   The FTC created a Renters Working Group specifically to look at unfair and deceptive practices affecting renters, and this was its first case. More are likely, and the payouts are automatic — which means a stale forwarding address is the main thing that stops a former tenant getting paid. ClaimBee tracks these as they land so you can check whether one covers a place you used to rent.

Frequently asked questions

Sources and official records

Every figure and date on this page was taken from the primary records below — court dockets, agency releases, and the settlement administrator's own notices. Payout averages we describe as averages are calculated from the official totals, not reported per-person estimates.

• FTC — Invitation Homes Settlement refund page (444,131 checks, $47.2 million, March 2026)
• FTC case record — FTC v. Invitation Homes Inc., No. 1:24-cv-04280-SEG (N.D. Ga.), File No. 202 3170
• FTC press release — the complaint: junk fees, inspections, deposits, and eviction practices