Since May 12, 2025, the FTC's Rule on Unfair or Deceptive Fees requires every short-term lodging seller (Airbnb, Vrbo, hotels, and vacation rentals) to display the all-in total price, including mandatory cleaning and service fees, before you pay. The rule bans hidden drip pricing but does not ban any specific fee or cap what hosts charge.
Key Takeaways
- Since May 12, 2025, the FTC rule requires short-term lodging sellers to show the total price, including mandatory fees, before you pay.
- The rule bans hidden drip pricing but does not ban any specific fee or cap what hosts charge.
- Violations carry civil penalties of up to $53,088 per violation plus mandatory consumer refunds.
- Government taxes can still be shown separately, but mandatory cleaning, service, and resort fees must be in the up-front total.
This guide explains what the FTC junk fee rule changed for vacation rentals, which fees can still show up, and how to check a total before you book an Oklahoma City stay.
You've clicked "book" on a $140-a-night vacation rental before, only to watch the total balloon at the last screen. As of May 12, 2025, that surprise is illegal. Mandatory fees now have to be baked into the price you see up front.
There's a catch. The rule forces honesty about the total, and it leaves every fee in place. A platform can still charge a service fee. It just has to show it earlier, and that is where the remaining price gap between a platform booking and a direct booking lives.
The rule is already active and already enforced. Days after it took effect, the FTC sent its first warning letter to StubHub. Violations carry civil penalties of up to $53,088 per violation plus mandatory consumer refunds.
What Changed for Vacation Rentals on May 12, 2025?
The FTC's Rule on Unfair or Deceptive Fees took effect May 12, 2025. It covers short-term lodging of every kind, from hotels and motels to vacation rentals, short-term rentals and home shares, plus live-event ticketing. Businesses must display the total price "clearly, conspicuously and prominently," including all mandatory fees, before you buy.
Before this, the common pattern was drip pricing. You saw a low nightly rate on the search page, then a cleaning fee, a service fee, and sometimes a "resort" or "destination" fee stacked on at checkout. The FTC estimates the change will save consumers roughly 53 million hours a year spent hunting for real totals, worth over $11 billion across the next decade.
The rule also applies to business-to-business transactions, so it reaches beyond consumer bookings.
Does the FTC Rule Ban Cleaning Fees or Service Fees?
No. It doesn't outlaw any specific fee, and it doesn't cap pricing. Cleaning fees, service fees and resort fees can all still exist. They just can't hide until the final screen anymore.
When Did the Junk Fee Rule Take Effect, and What Comes Next?
The rule didn't arrive out of nowhere, and a companion bill is still moving through Congress. Here's how it has unfolded.
| Date | What happened |
|---|---|
| May 12, 2025 | FTC Rule on Unfair or Deceptive Fees takes effect for short-term lodging and live-event tickets |
| Days after effective date | FTC sends its first warning letter, to StubHub, for advertising tickets without all mandatory fees in the total |
| 2025 (ongoing) | Hotel Fees Transparency Act of 2025 passes the U.S. House; pending in the Senate |
Which Vacation Rental Fees Can Still Legally Appear?
The rule regulates disclosure. Plenty of line items are still legal as long as they sit in the up-front total, and knowing which is which tells you what you're comparing when you shop.
| Fee or practice | Before May 12, 2025 | Under the FTC rule |
|---|---|---|
| Mandatory cleaning fee | Often added at checkout | Must be in the total price shown up front |
| Platform service fee | Frequently revealed late | Still allowed, but must be in the up-front total |
| Resort / destination fee | Common surprise on the final screen | Still allowed, but must be disclosed in the total |
| Government taxes | Added at the end | Can be shown separately from the base total, but mandatory fees cannot |
| Truly optional add-ons | Varied | Not required in the base total because they're optional |
What to Check on a Listing
- A nightly rate that looks low next to a total that doesn't match it.
- Cleaning, service or resort fees that appear only on the final screen. Under the rule, that is the drip pricing it bans.
- Taxes shown on their own line. That part is allowed.
- Add-ons you never chose sitting inside the total.
How to Compare Vacation Rental Totals, Step by Step
- Find the all-in total on each listing before you pick one, since the rule now requires it up front.
- Set taxes aside, because they can still be listed separately.
- Look for the platform service fee inside that total. It is still legal, just visible earlier.
- Compare the same dates and home through a direct booking, where that platform fee is the gap.
- Report a total that jumps at checkout. Violations can reach $53,088 each, plus refunds.
The Bottom Line on the FTC Junk Fee Rule
Since May 12, 2025, the price you see first has to be the price you pay, minus taxes. Fees still exist. Shop on the total, and for an Oklahoma City stay, check what the same home costs without a platform fee in it.