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  4. September 2019
  5. The Effects of Rent Control Expansion on Tenants, Landlords, and Inequality: Evidence from San Francisco

The Effects of Rent Control Expansion on Tenants, Landlords, and Inequality: Evidence from San Francisco

  • Rebecca Diamond
  • Tim McQuade
  • Franklin Qian
American Economic Review
vol. 109, no. 9, September 2019
(pp. 3365-94)
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Abstract

Using a 1994 law change, we exploit quasi-experimental variation in the assignment of rent control in San Francisco to study its impacts on tenants and landlords. Leveraging new data tracking individuals' migration, we find rent control limits renters' mobility by 20 percent and lowers displacement from San Francisco. Landlords treated by rent control reduce rental housing supplies by 15 percent by selling to owner-occupants and redeveloping buildings. Thus, while rent control prevents displacement of incumbent renters in the short run, the lost rental housing supply likely drove up market rents in the long run, ultimately undermining the goals of the law.

Citation

Diamond, Rebecca, Tim McQuade, and Franklin Qian. 2019. "The Effects of Rent Control Expansion on Tenants, Landlords, and Inequality: Evidence from San Francisco." American Economic Review, 109 (9): 3365-94. DOI: 10.1257/aer.20181289

Additional Materials

JEL Classification

  • R23 Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics: Regional Migration; Regional Labor Markets; Population; Neighborhood Characteristics
  • R31 Housing Supply and Markets
  • R38 Production Analysis and Firm Location: Government Policy