Published April 16, 2026
Rent control is presented as a way to make housing more affordable, but it does the opposite. By holding rents below market levels, it reduces supply, discourages maintenance, and weakens incentives for new construction. The result is fewer available units, lower housing quality, and a market that works less well for those trying to enter it. Its political durability is part of the problem. Rent control protects incumbent tenants while outsiders face a tighter supply, lower vacancy rates, and a harder search. By contrast, gasoline price controls in the 1970s were easier to repeal because the costs were visible and broadly shared. Rent control persists because its benefits are concentrated among those already inside the system, while the costs fall on those still trying to get in.
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© 2026 by the Board of Trustees of Leland Stanford Junior University.
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