The current cities and states trying to stop landlords from jacking up rent prices

By Jason Lalljee  via Business Insider

Rent is getting more expensive everywhere. 

In most US states and cities, there’s not a whole lot the government can do about it. That’s because rent control is prohibited in 37 states.

But the surge in housing costs amid the ongoing pandemic has led several jurisdictions to take another look at new laws to clamp down on rent increases, even as landlords fight back — and in some cases taking legal action. 

In states like Massachusetts, where tenants’ rights groups are clamoring for the statewide ban on rent control to be lifted, evictions are rising. They’ve been increasing throughout the country as well, after the federal pandemic moratorium on evictions endedat the end of 2021. And rent continues to surge at record rates as people get booted from their homes. 

Landlord groups argue that rent control will reduce the available supply of apartments, and that property values and tax revenue will decrease. There is limited empirical data about whether that’s true, but detractors argue that rent control reduces incentives for landlords to supply housing, with some case studies showing that the lost rental housing supply drives up market rents in the long run in units not protected by rent control. 

An Urban Institute study from 2019 concludes that more research needs to be done before evaluating rent control either way.

“If rent control is judged on its ability to promote stability for people in rent-controlled units, evidence has generally found it to be successful,” the study said. “However, evidence is also mixed for rent control’s ability to promote economic opportunity or reduce racial disparities.” 

Rent control regulations exist in five states, as well as Washington, D.C: New York, New Jersey, California, Oregon, and Maryland. The Wall Street Journal reported this week that regulations being proposed throughout the country would allow landlords to boost monthly rents by no more than 2% to 10%. Arizona, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Kentucky, New Jersey, New York, Washington and Massachusetts have all introduced proposals to add or expand rent control protections, but these new proposals haven’t cleared their legislatures. 

Boston, MA

New Boston Mayor Michelle Wu campaigned on bringing rent control back to the city, and a poll shows that a majority of Bostonians support the move. 

Local rent controls were banned almost 30 years ago in a statewide referendum, however. State Democrats are currently advancing a bill that would repeal it, although the state’s Republican governor said he is unlikely to sign off on such a law, which would give cities like Boston the option to implement rent control. 

“Cities across the country use rent stabilization as one tool among many to protect tenants and keep families in their homes,” Wu saidlast week, after launching a Rent Stabilization Advisory Committee. “The majority of Boston residents and families are renters. If we aren’t willing to take on the rent increases that are driving families out of Boston, then we aren’t meeting the needs of our neighborhoods. 

COLORADO

State House Representative Andrew Boesenecker co-sponsored a bill to limit mobile-home lot rent increases by either 3%, or by the local inflation rate in a given year, whichever of the two is higher. 

“For mobile home park residents, there’s no relief valve,” Boesenecker said, saying residents are often “handcuffed” to land they don’t own. That’s because residents of mobile-home lots may own the homes themselves, but can’t necessarily afford to transport them. There are few other affordable options, meaning they’re stuck on the property. 

Sponsors say that it’s a response to the influx of wealthy investors buying mobile home parks and greatly increasing rents, CPR News reported. 

FLORIDA

In Florida, lawmakers in Miami and Tampa have considered declaring housing emergencies to pass rent control, as rents in the state have risen as much as 30% in the past year.

Orlando’s county (Orange) has recently voted 4-3 to put the Rent Control consideration on the November ballot. Click here for latest article

2022 marks the third year in a row that Florida State Senator Victor Torres has filed a bill that would give rent control power to local governments, although he has said that it has gotten no traction. 

“We need compromise and we need to have these landlords understand the hardship that most of these families are going through,” he told ABC News. 

Montclair, NJ

Montclair, New Jersey, enacted a pandemic rent freeze that must be reauthorized every three months. The most recent extension expires on March 31. 

And landlords in the town have been fighting back. Over the last two years, a group of landlords has been challenging the rent control ordinance passed by the town council, repeatedly suing the town after rent control negotiations failed. 

The rent control freeze limits yearly rent increases to 4.25%, 2.5% for senior citizens. It also prevents rent increases above 10% after a tenant vacates a unit. The law, however, only applies to properties with four or more units built before 2008.

Minnesota

In November, St. Paul and Minneanapolis voters passed a rent control cap preventing rent from increasing more than 3% annually in most places.

Additionally, applying the cap to both new construction buildings and older vacant units gave St. Paul one of the most restrictive rent control laws in the entire country. 

“Passage of this proposal marks a significant step towards addressing the affordable housing crisis in St. Paul and puts our elected leaders on notice that renter protections and housing stability are essential priorities for voters,” said Tram Hoang, campaign manager of pro-rent control group Keep St. Paul Home, during a postelection press conference in November. 

But this week, a Minnesota Senate panel voted to remove rent control measures in Minneapolis and St. Paul and block ballot questions on the issue in the future. The move would apply retroactively, overturning voter-approved measures in the Twin Cities. The bill is proceeding to the Minnesota Senate for a vote. 

CALIFORNIA

California is one of the few states that have blanket rent control measures. It limits annual rent increases at 5%, plus the change in the regional Consumer Price Index (CPI), or no more than 10% of the lowest gross rental rate a tenant was charged during any year-long period before the date of the increase.

In Santa Ana, however, local officials go even further. Last year, Santa Ana instilled a cap of 3% a year for apartments built before 1995, in addition to the regional inflation. 

Landlords can petition for an exemption from the law if they prove that raising rent on their tenants beyond 3% will provide a “fair and reasonable return” on their properties. 

To learn more about Rent Control and its history, VISIT HERE <<<<<< (Economic Library)