Our Rents Increase, While
America’s housing crisis isn’t just about supply—it’s about power. Over the past decade, large corporate landlords and private equity firms have quietly bought up thousands of apartment buildings across the country, turning homes into profit machines. When a handful of companies control large portions of local housing markets, they can raise rents, add junk fees, and squeeze families who have nowhere else to go. This kind of market concentration functions like a monopoly: it limits competition, drives up prices, and leaves working people paying more for less. Housing should be a place to live and build a future—not a commodity for Wall Street to manipulate.
We can fix this by restoring competition and putting communities ahead of corporate consolidation. Congress should enforce and strengthen antitrust laws to break up dominant corporate landlords, limit the number of housing units large investors can control in a single market, and stop private equity firms from buying and warehousing apartment buildings. At the same time, we should prioritize housing owned by local landlords, nonprofit housing providers, and community land trusts that keep rents stable and homes affordable. By taking on monopolistic landlords and removing private equity from the housing market, we can lower costs, protect renters, and ensure that housing in America serves families—not financial speculation.