#therentistoodamnhigh
Back in the mid-90s I lived in a cinder block 1 BR apartment a few blocks from there. I think we paid $350/month. #therentistoodamnhigh
December 20, 2025 at 5:14 PM
Help us spread the word to ensure no one goes without power this winter!!

#leavetheheaton
#therentistoodamnhigh
#stoptheshutoffs
December 4, 2025 at 7:03 PM
Patty wants a real dinner, but have you seen grocery prices?

To quote a wise man: The price of turkey is TOO DAMN HIGH! 🦃📉

This is the "Pancake Artist Special." It looks like a feast, but costs pennies. Grab a bottle of syrup and be grateful!

#TheRentIsTooDamnHigh #PancakeArt #Peanuts
November 27, 2025 at 5:47 PM
https://www.arlnow.com/2025/11/17/county-board-seeks-ability-to-limit-rent-increases-in-contentious-vote/ it appears that “anti-rent-gouging” legislation has a fair chance of passing in Virginia next year. #rentcontrol #housing #Inflation #virginia #valeg #arl
The Arlington County Board is seeking legislation that would give localities the power to limit annual increases in apartment rents. Board members added language to their 2026 General Assembly priorities package on Saturday, seeking the ability to add “anti-rent-gouging protections.” The decision generated applause from supporters who argued that the decision could promote affordability, and criticism from opponents concerned about hindering free market solutions. The item was added to the package at the request of Board member JD Spain, Sr., who said he had “received a number of emails and calls from critical stakeholders” supporting inclusion of the measure. The amendment replaced one section on housing with new verbiage: * **Old version:** The county government urges legislators to “support efforts to keep housing costs in check” * **Replacement:** The county government seeks to have legislators support efforts “to keep housing costs affordable, including anti-rent-gouging protections” The vote to support the addition, and the package as a whole, was 4-0, with Board member Maureen Coffey absent from the meeting. County Board Chair Takis Karantonis took issue with the characterization of the request as full-blown rent control. Anti-rent-gouging is a different way to approach the issue, he said. “They are two very different toolboxes and there are many variations inside each one,” he said. Karantonis, won re-election this month, said action is needed because average rents have increased 27% in Arlington over the five years he has been in office. In 2020, rents had declined in urban areas like Arlington as the pandemic hit — before rebounding. There is no question Arlington has high rents. The monthly survey conducted by Apartment List typically ranks the county as having the fifth highest median rental rate among 100 large urban areas, and the highest outside California. Earlier this year, the median rental cost for a two-bedroom apartment surpassed $3,000 monthly before falling back slightly. Board members had conducted a public hearing on the draft legislative package at their October meeting, and did not take testimony on the revisions at the Nov. 15 meeting. During public comment, however, the issue was raised by one proponent. Larisa Zehr of the Legal Aid Justice Center urged Board members to include the housing proposal in their legislative package. “These measures preserve affordable housing on a far [wider] scale than subsidizing construction or funding vouchers,” she said. Proponents of the policy note that it typically includes an exemption on the rent-increase limitations for property owners that make improvements to their properties. “Landlords that do right by their tenants will be able to upkeep the property and continue to make a reasonable profit,” Zehr said. Though not addressing the housing provision specifically, Board member Matt de Ferranti said Democratic-leaning localities such as Arlington should use the election results to press a more progressive agenda in Richmond. Democrats picked up more than a dozen seats in the House of Delegates and swept all three statewide races on Nov. 4. “We have to recognize the moment,” de Ferranti said. “The majority and the governor-elect have to be bold.” One group with concerns about the implications of the Board’s actions is the Apartment & Office Building Association of Metropolitan Washington (AOBA). The trade organization “is alarmed by the County Board’s endorsement of ‘anti-rent-gouging’ legislation, which we believe comes from a misguided understanding of how the housing market functions,” said Scott Pedowitz, its director of Virginia government affairs. “Activists in Richmond, and elsewhere, are applying the phrase ‘anti-rent gouging’ to describe rent control, a policy that has failed with harmful consequences wherever it has been adopted,” he said in response to an ARLnow query. Joseph Ventrone, president of the North Rosslyn Civic Association and a member of the county’s Housing Commission, expressed surprise that the issue was included in the legislative package despite not being requested by the housing panel. Ventrone said he has significant concerns with the County Board’s action. “Regardless of the label, whether ‘rent stabilization’ or ‘anti-rent gouging,’ these policies can have significant unintended consequences,” he told ARLnow. “They risk slowing the very housing production we need, especially at a time when rents in Arlington are flat or declining. All we have to do is look at Montgomery County, Md.” “I’m also concerned that this decision moved forward without public engagement,” Ventrone said. “I hope the Board will continue to work closely with the Housing Commission and the community as these discussions evolve.” He added: > “Many of the challenges that concern residents — such as the price-fixing behavior — are already being addressed appropriately through the courts. Arlington rents have been essentially flat or declining over the last 12-18 months, consistent with broader trends in the D.C. region. Vacancy rates remain healthy, new supply is coming online, and national research shows that adding housing is the most reliable way to keep rents stable over time.” Suzanne Sundburg, a veteran fiscal watchdog in the county, told ARLnow she was “ambivalent” about the proposal. She said she had concerns, but also could see the reasoning behind attempts to have governments regulate the level price increases. “On the one hand, it seems to be the one thing that has ever worked to control ongoing rent increases in high-cost locales,” she said. “And since developers everywhere seem uninterested in building multifamily housing — or housing in general — that is remotely affordable to people of average or modest means, that leaves localities with few options to keep market-rate housing affordable.” Like Ventrone, Sundburg pointed to Montgomery County, where rent-stabilization efforts put in place in 2023 have drawn pushback. “Even MoCo is listening to landlords, mindful of the pitfalls of constraining rents too much,” she said. “This is especially true for smaller landlords who frequently operate with tighter margins and lack access to capital.” Regardless of the intent of the policy position, AOBA’s Pedowitz voiced criticism of it being added to the package very late, without input from key organizations. “Not only was the rent-control provision absent from the draft agenda posted before the meeting, but Board members did not give the courtesy of reaching out before the meeting and asking if our members had insights that could shape their discussion,” he said. The County Board’s approach “stands in sharp contrast to other localities,” where governing bodies have included these provisions in their draft agendas and welcomed their housing providers to participate in the discussion as valued members of the community,” Pedowitz said. Arguments for and against constraining rent increases are playing out nationally as well as locally. The National Apartment Association “opposes rent control in all forms,” according to its website. Infringing on landlords’ rights to set rates at what the market will bear conspires to “worsen shortages, cause existing buildings to deteriorate and disproportionately benefit higher-income households,” the group says. “Lawmakers should instead pursue proven alternatives like voucher-based rental assistance to address renter financial insecurity in the short-term and policies that increase housing supply to support affordability and renter stability long-term,” the organization says. The Urban Institute, however, believes flexible policies can mitigate negative impacts that resulted from an earlier efforts: > “Anti-gouging rent regulations can be designed to best fit a locality’s conditions and needs to counteract potential negative consequences evident with past rent-control laws. Anti-gouging rent regulations are more flexible than other rent-control laws in allowing larger increases in rent and exemptions.” Legislation introduced by Sen. Jennifer Boysko (D-38) in the 2025 General Assembly session would have given localities the option to impose limits on rent increases. Boysko’s measure died in the Senate Committee on General Laws and Technology on an unusual tie vote: Six Democrats voted in favor of the bill, all six Republicans voted against, and three Democrats abstained. Sen. Adam Ebbin (D-39), who chairs the committee, voted to support Boysko’s measure. Arlington’s other state senator, Barbara Favola (D-40), does not sit on the committee. While the House of Delegates is shifting from a narrow to a large Democratic majority based on this month’s election returns, the 40 Senate seats were not on the ballot. Democrats currently hold a 21-19 advantage in the upper body. The legislature convenes on Jan. 14 for what is expected to be a 60-day session. Board member Susan Cunningham said she anticipates a “fast and furious” amount of activity.
www.arlnow.com
November 17, 2025 at 11:47 PM
Huuum, J.D. the private equity wonder boy, accusing undocumented immigrants of buying up all the real estate way from young families is just another admission of what private c equity does...
#Therentistoodamnhigh
November 16, 2025 at 1:19 PM
He's still around? 😂 relevant today

#TheRentIsTooDamnHigh 🏚️
"People are working 8 hours a day/40 hrs/week just to find a 3rd job...The people I represent can’t afford to pay their rent. They’re being laid off. They can’t eat breakfast/lunch/dinner. Listen. A child’s stomach just growled. Did you hear it?"

The Rent Is Too Damn High Party is finally winning
The Rent Is Too Damn High
The 2025 Elections
open.substack.com
November 6, 2025 at 5:32 PM
And for what you get--

#TheRentIsTooDamnHigh
October 30, 2025 at 12:37 PM
Can’t possibly imagine who he’s referring to with his word choice.

Also, if more than 10% of Americans can’t afford groceries, the problem isn’t them. So maybe try figuring out the reasons and addressing them? But that would involve, like, compassion and shit.

#TheRentIsTooDamnHigh
May I present a former clerk to Justice Gorsuch.
October 27, 2025 at 2:07 AM
October 24, 2025 at 3:18 PM
I left for work 11 hours ago, just got back. I will be at work in 10 hours, and will be at work for 12 hours. Why does life have to Math so much?

#TheRentIsTooDamnHigh
#PerhapsIAmAsWell
September 12, 2025 at 2:36 AM
Excellent thread by @cd4losangeles.bsky.social about rent/renting/housing in Los Angeles

#therentistoodamnhigh
#rentcontrol
#losangeles
Why is the rent so damn high in LA? Simple economics: the demand for housing is extremely high and our housing supply is extremely low.
August 27, 2025 at 4:06 PM
$4 billion dollars in price fixing via algorithmic rent-setting.

#HousingCartel
#TheRentIsTooDamnHigh
UPDATE: America's largest landlord will stop using RealPage to inflate rents
YouTube video by More Perfect Union
www.youtube.com
August 16, 2025 at 7:56 PM
🔥 @sanders.senate.gov was in Charleston, West Virginia today 🔥

"Don't let the establishment DIVIDE us up!...We are ONE PEOPLE"

#FightTheOligarchy #TaxTheRich
#LivableWageNow
#UniversalHealthcare #TheRentIsTooDamnHigh #GroceriesAreTooExpensive

www.youtube.com/live/pO681OK...
Fighting Oligarchy in Charleston, West Virginia (Broadcast at 8PM ET)
YouTube video by Bernie Sanders
www.youtube.com
August 16, 2025 at 1:46 AM
August 15, 2025 at 11:39 AM
citylimits.org/the-rent-is-...

“The rent is too damn high!” A phrase coined by Mr. Jimmy McMillan, a Vietnam veteran and charismatic figure whose political career never really materialized after several attempts.

#JimmyMcMillan #TheRentIsTooDamnHigh!!
The Rent Is Still Too Damn High: Catching Up With Jimmy McMillan - City Limits
Jimmy McMillan’s performance in a gubernatorial debate in October 2010 sealed his status in New York political lore and cemented a six-word slogan into our vernacular. Today, he is fighting to hold on...
citylimits.org
August 15, 2025 at 11:37 AM
* Got a letter from my landlord, saying they're raising my rent again, this time by hundreds of dollars. I remember a time not that long ago when #NYC landlords wanted longtime tenants, so they kept rents low/the same for years. Those days are OVER 😭 #ApartmentLiving #TheRentIsTooDamnHigh
August 13, 2025 at 6:09 PM
🏡 Homes for people, not for profit. Let’s House the Future, New York ➡️ Get Involved at Our Link in Bio! #housethefuture #socialhousing #therentistoodamnhigh #nycapartments #nycrent
August 13, 2025 at 3:19 PM