Legislative
Rent Control Policy Document from the National Multifamily Housing Council
Rent regulation regimes, sometimes known as rent control, interfere with the rental housing market—indeed, that is their very purpose. This regulation leads to negative impacts on rental housing, such as declining housing supply and increased cost of rent, especially for those whom the policy intends to serve. Despite a largely conclusive body of research illustrating negative outcomes for renters, rent regulation is increasingly being proposed by politicians to their constituents as a solution to housing affordability challenges when, in fact, it exacerbates the problem. A previous literature review by Dr. Lisa Sturtevant in 2018¹ found several main impacts of rent control:
• Reduces the available supply of rental housing in a community;
• Raises rents in uncontrolled communities within the same larger market area;
• Forces residents into units that do not meet their needs, perhaps depriving other residents of units they need;
• Significant cost of rent control programs to states and localities; and
• Deterioration or lack of investment in rent-controlled buildings.
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Concerning the movement to raise Cleveland’s minimum wage to $15/hour:
Senate Bill 331, which now heads to the Senate, would prohibit communities in the state from raising the minimum wage beyond the state's minimum wage rate, currently set at $8.10 per hour. Cleveland city officials have asked state lawmakers to pass legislation to forestall a special election on the wage hike, set for next May.
Concerning Federal legislation to mandate energy benchmarking for multifamily housing:
IREM takes the following position, see details in the white paper on the web site - IREM opposes any mandatory energy conservation programs such as benchmarking, and support voluntary programs and continued education of improved energy consumption.
Click here for the latest legislative information on www.IREM.org. At this page you will find recent legislative updates, the Legislative Bulletin, calls to action, and other legislative news.
