"Build homes people can afford, cap rent increases"

A succinct prescription for the housing crisis: expand the stock of genuinely affordable dwellings while preventing price spirals in the existing rental market. The first clause shifts attention from abstract “supply” to the kind that matters, homes priced to low- and middle-income budgets. That implies public and community housing, inclusionary zoning with affordable set-asides, build-to-rent with long-term covenants, and medium-density, transit-linked infill. “Affordable” becomes a target tied to income (for example, no more than 30 percent of earnings), not a hope that trickle-down from luxury builds will eventually reach people locked out today.

Complementing supply, a cap on rent increases delivers immediate stability while new homes come online. Rather than blanket freezes, the emphasis is on predictable, modest rises, indexed to wages or CPI, paired with anti-avoidance rules to stop “renovictions” or re-listing at higher prices. Well-designed caps can reduce displacement, curb speculative hikes in tight markets, and anchor inflation expectations. To sustain investment and maintenance, policy can include limited exemptions for small landlords, transparent cost pass-throughs for genuine upgrades, and public finance that lowers the cost of building and holding rental stock.

Together, these levers recast housing from speculative asset to essential infrastructure. More non-market supply reduces scarcity; rent caps temper volatility and give households time and security to plan, save, and participate in their communities. The approach also tackles inequality by easing intergenerational barriers and keeping key workers near jobs. Success depends on coordination: funding social housing at scale, streamlining approvals without gutting standards, taxing empty homes and curbing short-term rentals, and enforcing fair tenancy laws. The underlying claim is moral as well as economic: a prosperous society ensures people have stable, affordable homes.