For years, the NMHC Quarterly Survey of Apartment Market Conditions has provided a snapshot of the apartment market, including trends in sales, equity financing and debt financing. In the first survey of 2026, NMHC included a special question examining the impact of rent regulation.
NMHC compared this year’s results to those of the January 2022 survey. The comparison shows that over the last four years:
- The share of respondents who said they have cut back on investment or development in rent-controlled markets increased from 26% to 35%.
- The share who said they do not operate in these markets and would not consider doing so because of the threat of rent control also increased from 32% to 41%.
- The share who said they have made no changes so far but are considering cutting back in these markets remained at 15%.
This means that the total share of respondents who have altered their investment or development decisions – or are considering doing so – has increased from 73% of respondents in January 2022 to 91%, nearly all the respondents to our January 2026 survey.
Only 7% of respondents this round said they do not plan any change in investment or development in markets affected by rent regulation (down from 23% last round), and only two percent said they do not operate in these markets but would consider doing so despite the threat of rent control (down from four percent four years ago). These findings come as broader apartment market conditions continue to ease nationwide.
Rent Control and Housing Affordability – Experts and Local Leaders Voice Concerns
Affordability, particularly housing affordability, has moved to the forefront of public debate. While rent control is once again being promoted as a remedy for rising housing costs, policymakers and economists have increasingly and consistently warned that rent control is a failed solution.
In recent weeks, a broad range of economists, housing experts, and elected leaders from across the political spectrum have renewed those concerns, arguing that rent control ultimately worsens affordability by constraining supply.
New Study Finds Rent Control Harms Housing Supply and Choice for Residents
Recently, The Providence Foundation announced findings from an extensive report on rent control policies and found that rent control policies have consistently had negative long-term impacts on housing markets, including reducing supply and worsening overall affordability.
Key Findings:
- Rent Control does not lower rents. It offers no immediate relief for those already struggling with high monthly payments and can incentivize landlords to raise rents to the absolute legal maximum every year.
- Rent Control’s benefits are untargeted, tying the largest subsidies to the most expensive housing. In a 3% rent cap scenario, a tenant paying rent of $3,000 per month would realize three times the annual savings ($1,584) of a tenant paying $1,000 per month ($528).
- Price caps swiftly chill housing production. St. Paul, Minnesota saw multifamily permits plummet 86.2% in a single quarter following its 2021 ordinance.
- Revenue caps disincentivize maintenance and encourage condo conversions. San Francisco’s rent-controlled housing supply fell 15% as landlords avoided regulation through conversions, while 64% of controlled units in New York City were found to have maintenance deficiencies.
- Rent control devalues the tax base, triggering a potential tax shift onto homeowners. As rental property values plummet – evidenced by a 5.4% reduction in Portland, Maine’s tax base – cities must either raise property tax rates or cut essential local services to offset the revenue gap.
- Supply-side reforms and rental assistance outperform regulations. Zoning changes in Austin, Texas cut rents by 22 percent, while Boston’s rental assistance program surpassed Seattle’s mandates in preventing displacement.
- Tax stabilization agreements and commercial-to-residential conversions are essential for unlocking housing supply. Boston and Philadelphia successfully use these incentives to make redeveloping underutilized commercial and industrial assets financially viable for developers.
The RentalHousingJournal.com is an interactive community of multifamily investors, independent rental home owners, residential property management professionals and other rental housing and real estate professionals. Their website features exclusive articles and blogs on real estate investing, apartment market trends, property management best practices, landlord tenant laws, apartment marketing, maintenance and more. Reprinted with permission.