Michael Durwin - rent control as currently enacted creates lots of perverse economic incentives: for landlords to stop maintaining their buildings (because the collected rent doesn't cover it). For tenants never to move, even if it makes sense for them to do so otherwise. For landlords to try an evict tenants who pay far below market. For new residents and residents forced to move to pay way higher rents than more stable residents. For residents to play arbitrage on the system by subsidizing their rent with AirBnB or newer roommates.

I've seen firsthand some of the evils of rent control and it is a crude instrument of social policy. If we think that the elderly, sick and/or artists to be able to stay in a neighborhood, why "charge" the landlord? Why not subsidize their rent directly with a gov't program? For the rest of us, rent increases can be spread out over the entire house stock, which means that not just the new or moving around kids get stuck with the bill - and any given rent increase is likely to be quite modest.