How Rent Control Hurts Renters

Everywhere it’s tried, rent control harms the people it’s meant to help. Yet foolish politicians continue to implement it. ———— To make sure you see the new weekly video from Stossel TV, sign up here: #subscribe ———— Rent for housing is up 11%. To “fix” that, St. Paul, Minnesota just imposed uniquely strict rent control. It applies to existing housing, and new construction. The city is repeating mistakes many have made in the past. Rent control once destroyed much of my town, New York. Because landlords couldn’t make money, some set fire to their own buildings to collect insurance. The late economist Walter Williams once told me, “Short of aerial bombardment, the best way to destroy a city is through rent controls.” But the politicians don’t understand that. In my new video, I confront a socialist city councilwoman from St. Paul’s sister city Minneapolis. She’s eager to control rents.