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My daughter is a member of the Homes Guarantee Campaign, I'm grateful to have this opportunity to share with you my experience and thoughts on rent control and other tenant protections.
I was a renter up until 20 years ago. My whole life rent was never more than 20% of my income. I was able to raise 3 children as a single mother who rented. I was able to purchase my home (from family) and haven't thought much about the cost of rent until the last 4 years. Watching my children struggle to find a home, moving year after year working two jobs to make ends met has been hard as a mom. I've watched my eldest son live in small apartment with his family of 4 where all of their mental health began to deteriorate and his pride was constantly being crushed because of these conditions. My middle child and youngest moved into a home with 5 other adults to be able to afford rent. This house was tiny and had been paid off for years yet the landlord charged almost 3000 a month. I would listen to them struggle to get minor repairs addressed or regular maintenance dealt with. I couldn't understand the price they were paying or the total disregard from the landlord to provide the quality of housing that 3000 a month should afford you.
Both of those situations were a couple years ago. My eldest bought a home, but my 2 younger children are still renters. My youngest son has had his brother in law over to work on the apartment because the landlord doesn't answer the phone. They have lived in this place for 4 years because they can't afford the first, last, security it costs to move and they don't have 3x the rent for income that is necessary to qualify for a new apartment. From all my decades of renting I've never heard or could have afforded those move in costs, my family would have been homeless. How do we expect people to do that today?
My daughter lives in a town that is 40 minutes away from me and her brothers because the cost of rent was too high around here. It has been difficult for us to stay close due to the distance. Again when I was a renter I never had to live someplace I didn't want to because I couldn't afford one place. The cost of rent has gotten out of control.
To learn that our tax dollars are being used to back mortgages that have restrictions attached for tenant protection or rent control makes me sick. It's wrong for our need of housing to be such a profitable business but to learn that even the apartments that my tax dollars in backing makes me sick.
We need rent control for all apartments but FHFA can lead the way. Please implement rent control, tenant protections, just cause evictions and the right to counsel for all FHFA mortgages.