Why Rent Control Might Be Hurting the People It’s Meant to Help

Host Cara Stern is back from parental leave, and she and Mike are jumping right into one of the most debated topics in housing policy — rent control. Inspired by Zohran Mamdani's campaign rent freeze proposal, they dig into how these rules shape the housing market, not just for landlords and tenants, but for entire cities. While rent control offers stability and predictability for those lucky enough to have it, it can also quietly freeze people in place — making it harder to move for a new job, grow a family, or even downsize later in life.In this episode, they explore how rent control affects mobility, opportunity, and fairness between long-term renters and newcomers. From young families trying to upsize to seniors staying put in oversized apartments, Cara and Mike unpack the tradeoffs behind this well-intentioned policy. Is rent control helping affordability, or holding cities back from building the housing we actually need?Chapters:01:00 Introduction01:19  Zahran Mamdani's rent control policy overview01:44 Rent control explained02:19 Mike gives an example of how rent control locks people into place05:20 How being locked into place effects family planning07:28 How being locked into place effects seniors downsizing09:34 Rent control hurts people who need to move10:03 The distributional consequences of rent control 10:45 How newer tenants subsidize newer tenants12:39 Cara proposes an NIMBYism theory13:21 Mike counters with “unintended consequences”15:18 If rent control disappears mobility increases17:36 Should rent control be abolished in Ontario?Research/linksHousing Market Spillovers:Evidence From The End Of Rent Control In Cambridge Massachusettshttps://www.nber.org/system/files/working_papers/w18125/w18125.pdfStats Can data:Housing suitability of private householdRent controls do far more harm than good, comprehensive review findsRent controls do far more harm than good, comprehensive review finds — Institute of Economic AffairsRenters’ shelter costs by duration of tenancyRenters’ shelter costs by duration of tenancyMamdani Seeks to Freeze Rents on Stabilized Units. What About the Rest?Mamdani Seeks to Freeze Rents on Stabilized Units. What About the Rest? - The New York TimesThe Misallocation of Housing Under Rent ControlThe Misallocation of Housing Under Rent Control - American Economic Association rentcontrol.pdfHosted by Mike Moffatt & Cara Stern & Sabrina MaddeauxProduced by Meredith MartinFunded by the Neptis Foundation https://neptis.org/