First in a series
[img]1305|right|Andy Weissman||no_popup[/img]Long after the City Council had chorused in unison against rent control and sleepily closed out last evening’s meeting at 1:30 this morning, Councilman Andy Weissman offered a more collegial perspective on the dispute.
“Everybody has sympathy for renters and unfairness,” he said as the sun rose. “But when you read all of the literature, at least from my perspective, rent control does not work.
“It only protects those people who are in a unit that is not rent controlled at the time rent control goes into effect.
“If tenants are not on a lease and they find out rent control is coming, the first thing the landlord will do is raise the rent.”
Elaborating on why he believes rent control is a negative, Mr. Weissman added:
“At that point, everybody gets a rent increase at the market rate or above, and from that point forward, tenants are stuck with whatever the annual increases are.
“Everybody is going to get an increase every year because that is all a landlord is able to do. That does not control rent.”
With landlord voices dominating the public speaker portion of the debate over the merits and demerits of rent control, there was no shortage of rhetoric about the perceived ineffectiveness of rent control in protecting tenants.
Mr. Weissman would affirmatively nod his head.
“Everybody who spoke against rent control talked about the way in which rent control ordinances reduce the quality and quantity of housing.”
(To be continued)
