No news article that attempts to justify rent control – like this one from NPR – should contain the statement:
“[She] has been evicted from nine apartments in the past four years. All she did, she says, was complain about things like a gas leak, mold or a missing security gate.” [emphasis mine]
Shame on you, NPR; any legitimate news organization would have investigated the circumstances of the subject’s evictions so as to eliminate the “…she says…” from the story. But the story isn’t about the truth behind her evictions; no, instead it is a political piece meant to justify the imposition of rent control.
Unfortunately, rent control simply doesn’t work; it only makes it possible for a select few to have their rent subsidized at the expense of landlords. The article actual admits this flaw:
“Even though much of the research shows rent control doesn’t help most tenants in the long run, advocates say at least current tenants are protected.”
But helping tenants isn’t the goal, is it? There is little room to deny this position, given that they know it “…doesn’t help most tenants…” and yet establish rent control anyway. The goal instead is political control over people through dependence; it is effectively vote purchasing using the landlord’s money.
I think this excerpt from the article says it all:
“…housing advocates have said they have goosebumps at the idea of launching campaigns all across the state to get local towns to adopt the new rules…”
Goosebumps. You can’t make this stuff up…