Amid CT rent increases, are protections for tenants available?

Connecticut is in an affordable housing crisis: nearly half of the state’s renter population pays over the recommended one-third of their income for rent and 86% of low-income renters struggle to afford housing, according to Data Haven.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, rents rose dramatically at an average rate of 11% nationwide. In Connecticut, tenants unions say rents rose by around 20 percent. Data compiled by Hearst Connecticut Media Group shows that during the two years of the pandemic, rent rose by 15 percent on average across the state.

Last legislative session, lawmakers debated a series of bills to fight the housing crisis and passed a set of protections for tenants but did not pass a rent cap measure that tenant unions advocated for.

Meanwhile, at the local level, more towns and municipalities are implementing provisions of a 2022 state law that requires the creation of fair rent commissions.

Here’s what to know.

What are rent caps?

Rent caps prevent landlords from increasing rent yearly by a set percentage. The bill debated last year included a 4% cap with an additional bump allowed for inflation. Tenant organizers were pushing for a 2.5 or 2% cap.

More than 200 municipalities across the country and two states — California and Oregon — have rent caps. Connecticut is one of 31 states that prohibit towns from establishing their own rent caps, according to a report from the Office of Legislative Research.

Why did the rent cap bill fail?

After hearing hours of testimony from hundreds of tenants and some landlords, the state legislature cut out rent caps from the bill. Instead, the committee voted out a bill that created a task force to study the effects of evictions on landlords and rent stabilization policies.

The measure faced opposition from landlord groups, which said landlords might have to bear the burden of inflation and increased costs of doing business that exceed the rent cap. They also argued that it would disincentivize people from keeping or expanding their number of rental units.

Tenant unions and their allies in the state legislature plan to reintroduce rent caps during the 2024 legislative session, but lawmakers have said they’re hesitant on the issue. Political support has not meaningfully swung in favor of rent caps, and the 2024 session will be a shorter February-May session since there is no budget to pass, making the passage of controversial bills less likely across the board.

What are fair rent commissions?

Fair rent commissions are municipal boards that hear resident complaints about rent increases and other issues. They have the power to conduct investigations, issue subpoenas and issue orders regarding landlord-tenant disputes.

Before last year, 25 towns had commissions.

A 2022 law passed by the state legislature required 27 additional towns in Connecticut to create fair rent commissions. The law was supposed to go into effect on July 1, but it is still in various stages of implementation across the state.

The 2022 legislation required towns with 25,000 or more residents to adopt ordinances creating fair rent commissions. A handful of towns have missed the deadline. Some have passed the ordinance, but the commissions haven’t met yet, and others have commissions that meet regularly.

What other housing protections passed this year?

— Towns can now increase fines on landlords whose properties break municipal and housing code violations from $250 to $2,000.

And these laws went into effect on Oct. 1, 2023:

— Landlords who own four or fewer units can no longer discriminate based on sexual orientation.

— Landlords cannot charge most application fees other than security deposits, first month’s rent, key or special equipment deposits.

— Landlords can only charge up to $50 plus inflation for tenant screening reports.

— Landlords must give renters a copy of the tenant screening reports.

— Landlords are not allowed to charge move-in or move-out fees.

— Tenants get a nine-day grace period before late fees start.

— Week-to-week renters get a four-day grace period before late fees start.

— When the fees are charged, the landlord must charge the least of these three options: Up to $5 per day, for a maximum of $50

• 5% of overdue rent
• 5% of the tenant’s share of the rent if they are on a housing voucher.

— Security deposits must be returned within 21 days rather than 30 — landlords who do not comply are liable for double the original amount.

These laws go into effect on Jan. 1, 2024:

— Landlords must offer a walk-through of an apartment or house.

— The Department of Housing must create a walk-through checklist.

— If they live in apartments with five or more units, tenants above 62 and people with intellectual or physical disabilities are protected from evictions and rent increases.

— Landlords must notify these protected classes that they have new protections.

— The Department of Housing will also notify the protected classes.

This law goes into effect on July 1, 2024:

— The state must remove online records from evictions that were withdrawn, dismissed, or decided in favor of the tenant within 30 days.

Yash Roy is a reporter for The Connecticut Mirror (https://ctmirror.org/ ). Copyright 2023 © The Connecticut Mirror.