The government says it doesn’t back rent controls – but new protections should limit how much landlords can push up prices.
Articles on Rent controls
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The five international models we examined would have prevented excessive rent increases and helped many renters stay in their homes.
Despite the claims of landlords and politicians, there is no economic consensus against rent controls. A more nuanced debate would help, given the scale of New Zealand’s housing affordability problem.
While the idea of rent controls can seem attractive at first glance, the evidence suggests the government is right to be sceptical of their ability to help ease the housing crisis.
Government action to control rents isn’t unprecedented. Menzies did it in the second world and subsequent state measures kept rents in check for decades. Now extreme circumstances justify it again.
Housing laws in England can still leave tenants without proper protection, but the latest reforms offer hope for the future.
Noisy tourists are putting a strain on Berlin’s rental market.
While New York clings firmly to its system of rent control, London’s housing market has changed too much to re-introduce them.
Why putting a price ceiling on rent is not the answer to a city’s housing problems.
Sure, a chunk of Stuyvesant Town’s units will remain affordable for 20 years. But what happens after that?
Miliband’s plans to stop landlords hiking up rents won’t fix the housing supply problem.
Top contributors
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Professor of Sociology, Social Policy and Criminology, University of Stirling
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Senior Lecturer in Economics, The Open University
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Director, Real Estate Economics and Investment Research Group, Nottingham Trent University
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Lecturer of Urban Studies, University of Pittsburgh
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Lecturer in Economics, University of Essex
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Senior Lecturer in Economics, University of Sydney
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Professor of Human Geography, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau
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Senior Lecturer, Social Policy and Housing, University of Stirling
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Lecturer in Sustainability and Urban Planning, RMIT University
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Research Fellow, Department of Behavioural and Social Sciences, University of Huddersfield
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Research Fellow, School of Communication, Society & Culture, Macquarie University
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Assistant Professor of Economics, Bocconi University
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Assistant Professor, Economics, University of Warwick