, Columnist
Yup, Rent Control Does More Harm Than Good
Economists put the profession's conventional wisdom to the test, only to discover that it's correct.
Not helping.
Photographer: Justin Sullivan/Getty ImagesRent control is one of the first policies that students traditionally learn about in undergraduate economics classes. The idea is to get young people thinking about how policies intended to help the poor can backfire and hurt them instead. According to the basic theory of supply and demand, rent control causes housing shortages that reduce the number of low-income people who can live in a city. Even worse, rent control will tend to raise demand for housing — and therefore, rents — in other areas.
Rent control, the Econ 101 student learns, helps a few people, but overall does more harm than good.