National Association of Realtors | March 19
A coalition that includes the Greater Boston Real Estate Board and the Massachusetts Association of REALTORS® says a proposal to cap rent increases statewide is overreaching and will do long-term harm to cities and towns across the state.
Rent-control proposals continue to rear their heads in states and communities around the country—and REALTOR® associations carry on their drive to educate consumers and lawmakers about why such initiatives are not a good idea.
This year, a particularly onerous ballot proposal is set to be decided by Massachusetts voters in November. The proposal would cap rent increases at 5% or the level of inflation, whichever is lower, and would apply in every city and town across the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. A coalition of concerned citizens and housing advocates—including the Greater Boston Real Estate Board and the Massachusetts Association of REALTORS®—is battling to defeat the measure.
The stakes are high, says Conor Yunits, executive vice president of the Issues Management Group, who chairs the campaign to defeat the measure. The ballot proposal offers few exceptions, and passage would result in depressed real estate values, putting municipalities that depend on property tax revenue in a fiscal bind, Yunits says.
Full article available here.