Imagine you are renting a property and your grass dies and gets brown (this is the Pacific Northwest, where, aside from some unseasonable August rain, it’s pretty dry all summer).

Then you get a note from your management company that letting that grass die violates the property’s rules and fines you $125. Then, on top of that, the company charges you an additional $125 for the trouble it took to put that note on your door.

These fines, so called “junk fees,” are allowed in Washington State.

A few cities like Seattle and Olympia have banned them. But those living outside areas with regulations can be subjected to a myriad of fines.

Renters claim it is a way to penalize them to the point of moving.

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/donate/soundsidenotes

Soundside is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network.

Guests:

Kelsey Turner, reporter at InvestigateWest

Relevant Links:

InvestigateWest: WA renters say unregulated ‘junk fees’ are being used to retaliate, discriminate

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

EduFuturists #5 - Troubleshoot your technology problems with Kim Mattina