Comment Detail

Comment

My name is Vick and I am a tenant living in Washington, DC. I am a member of the Homes Guarantee Campaign.

This year, tenants in rent-controlled units in DC were facing a historic 8.9% rent increase, and it was only through local organizing of tenants that we were able to push the DC Council to set a cap of 6%, which is still too high for many of my neighbors. I live in the largest residential building in DC, where there are over 65 active eviction cases as I write this comment. Almost all of these cases are related to rent payments, and I personally know many of the folks with cases as I'm part of our unions efforts to fight these evictions. So many of my neighbors are working multiple jobs, trying to raise their families, and struggling to get by as the rents continue to increase at wild rates each year. Again, this is a rent-controlled building. Folks have increased their hours at work, have started working multiple jobs, are trying to sign up for all the free food programs in DC just to save a little on food so they can make their rent payments. All of this is happening while those same folks are dealing with numerous maintenance issues, mold, rats and roaches, broken HVAC units, water leaks, broken elevators, and run down common areas.

The rent is too damn high. The Federal Housing Finance Agency should support tenants with the relief they need by limiting annual rent hikes to 1.5 times the Consumer Price Index or 3%, whichever is lower, in properties with federally backed mortgages. These limits should be applied universally as a requirement to all federally backed mortgage programs.

Additionally, the FHFA should prohibit evictions without good cause, ban source of income discrimination, enforce and expand the existing protections against discrimination, require safe and accessible housing conditions, create a landlord registry, require fair and standardized leases, ensure tenants have the right to organize, and create an Office of Tenant Protections to enforce these rights in all properties with federally backed mortgages. These changes would go a tremendous way in making sure myself and my neighbors have safe and accessible housing and don't have to constantly choose between our basic necessities like food and making rent that month.

Respectfully,
Vick