Joe Biden's Rent Control Plan

President Biden is pushing Congress to pass a federal rent control law. His proposal would require corporate landlords to limit rent increases on existing units to 5 percent per year or lose specific federal tax benefits, such as depreciation write-offs. This essentially means a nationwide 5 percent cap on annual rent hikes for affected units. Biden's team has made clear this would apply only to corporate landlords with over 50 units--about 20 million units nationwide--and would last for two years. New rental housing and properties undergoing major renovations would be exempt. The administration believes these carveouts will avoid reducing the supply of rental housing while the price ceiling itself will prevent large rent increases for tenants until new housing is developed.