When asked by co-host Margery Eagan whether the landlord should pay them, Healey said, “The landlord can make their own arrangements,” which wasn’t an answer.

Presumably, if tenants didn’t pay, landlords would have to as there are no other parties to the transactions. WGBH previously reported that those in the planning and tenant advocacy fields thought landlords might try to pass the cost onto renters by increasing monthly rents.

The other co-host, Jim Braude, called the legislature — in what he said was a euphemism —“‘fairly friendly’ to the real estate industry,” and asked whether such a change would be realistic. He pointed out that a real estate transfer tax that Healy supported “died” and that every home rule petition filed with the legislature by Boston’s mayor that challenged a real estate industry issue was either killed or never received a hearing.

Healey said that it was. “Anybody who’s out there listening to constituents knows that this is a real issue for people.”

Such a law was passed in New York City in November 2024. The Fairness in Apartment Rental Expenses Act, or FARE, was approved with a veto-proof margin of 42 to 8 and was set to take effect in six months.

However, the Real Estate Board of New York (REBNY) strongly opposed the measure. They also argued that landlords might pass the costs on through rent increases and said it ignores the common practice of multiple agents advertising a single property, which could lead to the disappearance of non-exclusive listings.

Council member Chi Ossé, who sponsored the bill, argued that landlords wouldn’t automatically increase rents because market forces ultimately determine rental prices. However, having to absorb additional costs would also be a market force.

REBNY filed suit in December 2024, claiming, among other things, that landlords don’t formally retain brokers, wrote the New York Law Journal. Instead, the group’s members only let brokers advertise open properties, and so were not contracting with them.