Lifestyle

FTC Is Mailing $47M to Renters Invitation Homes Overcharged

By Erica Coleman · April 25, 2026

If you rented a single-family home from Invitation Homes between January 2021 and September 2024, a check may already be in the mail — and you don’t need to do anything to receive it.

The Federal Trade Commission is mailing $47.2 million in refund checks to 444,131 consumers who the agency says were overcharged by Invitation Homes, the largest single-family rental company in the United States. The payments stem from a 2024 FTC lawsuit that accused the Dallas-based company of a pattern of deceptive practices against its tenants.

The core allegation: Invitation Homes advertised one lease price and then charged renters mandatory fees that weren’t disclosed upfront — fees labeled as “smart home technology” and “utility management” services, which tenants had no ability to opt out of. The FTC said these hidden charges could add up to as much as $1,700 per year on top of the advertised rent.

The company was also accused of charging tenants for normal wear and tear at move-out, billing for damages that existed before renters moved in, and in some cases charging tenants for building renovations — costs the agency argued should not be passed to renters.

“Capital One assured high returns with no catches, then pulled the rug out from under their customers,” New York Attorney General Letitia James said of a related banking case — the parallel framing applies here too: Invitation Homes advertised one price and quietly collected another.

Invitation Homes collected more than $18 million in application fees alone for homes whose advertised prices did not fully disclose mandatory costs, regulators said. As part of the settlement, the company agreed to pay $48 million in total — $47.2 million going directly to affected consumers through the FTC’s refund program, administered by Rust Consulting.

Who qualifies:

Renters who paid Invitation Homes $45 or more in covered fees or charges between January 2021 and September 2024. This includes people who have since moved out or closed their accounts with the company. Joint tenants and co-signers on leases during that period are also potentially eligible, though checks will go to the primary tenant on record.

What you’ll receive:

The average payment is approximately $106, based on the total settlement amount divided among the 444,131 eligible recipients. Individual amounts vary depending on how much each renter paid in qualifying fees and charges during the class period — renters who paid more in hidden fees will receive more.

What you need to do:

Nothing. The FTC and Rust Consulting are determining eligibility directly from Invitation Homes’ own records and mailing checks automatically. If you qualify and haven’t already received a refund directly from Invitation Homes, a check should arrive at your last known address.

One critical action if you do receive a check: cash it within 90 days. The expiration date is printed on the check. After 90 days the check is void, and uncashed funds are not reissued.

If you believe you qualify but haven’t received a check, or if you have questions about your payment, contact Rust Consulting at 1-800-804-6915 or by email at info@InvitationHomesRefund.com. The FTC will never call or email to request money, bank account information, or personal identification in connection with this refund program — if you receive such a request, it is a scam.

Invitation Homes, which owns or manages more than 110,000 properties across the U.S., did not admit wrongdoing as part of the settlement. Going forward, the company is required to clearly disclose lease prices, handle security deposits fairly, and stop the hidden fee practices that led to the lawsuit.