HB 1371 · 2026 · House · Housing Committee
Ban on rental application fees
AI-generatedprohibiting application fees for residential rental agreements.
Prohibits landlords from charging application fees for residential rental agreements.AI-generated
Status
Killed in the House — Inexpedient to Legislate · February 19, 2026- ✓Introduced
- ✕House
- Senate
- Governor
- Law
Analysis
This bill prohibits application fees for residential rental agreements.
From the bill's official ANALYSIS section.
In the bill's words
Quoted verbatim from the bill as introduced. Passages chosen from the operative text.Computed by this site
“A landlord or a landlord’s agent shall not charge an application fee to any individual in order to apply to enter into a rental agreement for a residential dwelling unit.”
“This section shall not be construed to prohibit a person from charging a fee to a person in order to apply to rent commercial or nonresidential property.”
“In order to conduct a background or credit check, a landlord shall accept any of the following:”
“A landlord or a landlord’s agent shall not require a social security number for the completion of a residential rental application or refuse to accept an application due to the lack of a social security number.”
Official record
gc.nh.gov · the authoritative source
Sponsors
- Rep. Ellen ReadDDeputy Ranking Member· Housing
Also: Rep. Efstathia BoorasD, Rep. Karen HegnerD, Rep. Matthew HicksD
Public testimony
47 signed in online · 7 wrote testimony
81% support19% oppose0% neutral
In their wordsVerbatim, exactly as submitted
“About 3 years ago, after renting the same apartment for nearly 11 years, my landlord chose to sell the home. After attempting to pull together the needed funds to purchase the house & not being able to come up with nearly $500,000 to do so, I was forced to leave my beloved home.…”
“Rents are already too high. The cost for the landlord to process a rental application is minimal in comparison to the rent received.…”
“Application fees unfairly burden renters and limit access to housing. Eliminating these fees promotes fairness and housing stability.”
“Vote ITL because: ~It is a very standard practice in the US to have applicants pay the cost of applying ~Not collecting an application fee will just raise rents on all the tenants not applying ~Not collecting an application fee could result in time and cost waste from multiple…”
Verbatim excerpts of submitted testimony, quoted from the testimony tool.
Read the testimony · as of Aug 12, 2026
Votes
yeanay- Feb 3, 2026HouseCommittee report· consent calendar: Inexpedient to Legislate16–2Overall89% yea
- Feb 19, 2026HouseVoice voteInexpedient to Legislateadopted
Hearings and debates
- Jan 27, 2026Public hearingHouse Housing2:48:28–3:06:0217m 34slocated in the stream transcriptPublic Hearing
- Feb 3, 2026Public hearingHouse HousingWatchnot located in the transcript — opens the full streamCommittee Report: Inexpedient to Legislate; Executive Session
- Feb 19, 2026Floor debateHouse floorWatchnot located in the transcript — opens the full streamInexpedient to Legislate — adopted, voice vote
Timestamps locate where this bill is taken up in the chamber's YouTube stream.
Legislative history
- Jan 7, 2026HouseIntroduced 01/07/2026 and referred to Housing HJ 1 P. 17
- Jan 27, 2026HousePublic Hearing: 01/27/2026 11:00 am GP 231
- Feb 3, 2026HouseExecutive Session: 02/03/2026 10:00 am GP 231
- Feb 3, 2026House: Inexpedient to Legislate 02/03/2026 (Vote 16-2; CC) HC 7 P. 14
- Feb 19, 2026HouseInexpedient to Legislate: MA VV 02/19/2026 HJ 5 P. 23
Coverage
No reporting linked yet.
Documents (PDF)
Bill text & amendments link direct to gc.nh.gov; committee reports stream from the state record.