Will rent control help alleviate a housing crisis?

Under a bill passed yesterday by the state Legislature, most of California’s 6 million rental units would become rent-controlled. The bill prohibits rent increases above 5%, plus the cost of inflation. Lawmakers describe the measure as a way to address the state’s housing affordability crisis, helping renters stay in their homes and avoid being priced out by rising housing costs. Oregon and New York have passed their own rent-control measures this year. But rent control is a controversial policy among housing economists, one that many think can raise prices.

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