‘We’re not going to stop,’ says Wu on rent control
Regardless of pushback and lawsuits directed at her rent control proposal, Mayor Michelle said the city “cannot let up the momentum” to address housing affordability.
“Across the country, the needs right now are intense, but the difference is that in Boston, we have the resources to make a difference,” Wu said during an interview with WBZ’s Jon Keller Sunday. “We know what we need to do. We have intellectual expertise, human capital — we just need to decide to do it together.”
Wu’s “rent stabilization” plan would cap year-overyear rent increases at 6% plus inflation increases, to a max of 10%, with certain exceptions.
Her comments follow the city council’s second week of debate on the subject and a lawsuit filed last week by the advocacy group MassLandlords demanding city communications regarding the proposal.
Wu was questioned on the landlords’ opposition as well as critique from the left that the proposal doesn’t go far enough. Some council members have argued against exemptions and that a 6% cap is still too high.
“This is a beautiful state to have democratic process in because we really get the whole range of advocacy and representation of community and that is a critical part of every proposal we have,” Wu said. “I think we can all acknowledge that the status quo has not been working, that families are getting pushed out of our city at an alarming rate.”
Wu noted Boston’s housing costs are among the highest in the nation and the majority of residents are renters. Her proposal, she said, “is meant to put guardrails and prevent price gouging.”
Some neighborhoods have experienced price hikes as high as 50% in the last several years, Wu added.
The city is “hurtling off a cliff” in terms of housing affordability, the mayor warned.
“We’re not going to stop until we are in a place where families from every income level, people from every background feel safe, welcome and can afford to stay here,” Wu said. “We are a ways from that now. And so, again, this is about ensuring that we are putting every possible tool and resource we have to housing and housing affordability.”