Earlier this summer, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission confirmed what many Georgia renters experience every month: obscene rent manipulation and outrageous price gouging. Consequently, I was unsurprised when I read that the FBI had raided corporate landlord Cortland Management’s Atlanta headquarters this May. The raid came as part of a larger criminal antitrust investigation by the Justice Department into conspiracy allegations made against dozens of corporate landlords, allegedly conspiring to inflate apartment rents artificially. Though our state proudly holds the title of the No. 1 place to do business, this distinction is at risk if we continue to allow landlords to compromise hardworking Georgians’ standard of living for their financial gain.
For decades, corporate landlords have been inflating rents to rip off countless American renters. According to Uprise RI, the newest practice used by corporate landlords includes weaponizing algorithmic price-fixing software that affects nearly 16 million rental units nationwide. And millions and millions of those units house hardworking families, couples, roommates and friends. In the metro Atlanta area, Uprise RI reported, 81% of multifamily rental prices are manipulated by corporate landlords, resulting in an 80% increase in rent since 2016 alone. This is unacceptable, particularly given that the report also found that vacancy rates have risen — a key indicator typically leading to lower rents.
Credit: Photo contributed by the candidate
Credit: Photo contributed by the candidate
The property rental business has changed drastically over the years from private citizens renting houses to corporations, Airbnbs and even foreign investors taking advantage of hardworking Americans who are desperate for an affordable place to live that is decent and safe. Hundreds of high-rise apartment buildings, condominiums and even single-family homes are being built to rent out, denying people the opportunity to attain the American dream of homeownership. How can people afford to live in these brand-new units if they can’t afford to stay where they already live? How can they save for a down payment to own their own home when more and more of their money goes to greedy corporate landlords each month?
Though this issue is affecting all Georgians, I looked deeper at how this issue is affecting Black Georgians. According to the National Equity Atlas, Black renters and other renters of color have been the two highest housing-burdened populations at 56% and 54%, respectively, in 2020. My heart is broken on learning that corporate landlords are victimizing Black Georgians at a higher rate than any other demographic.
To make matters worse, for hardworking Georgians — according to Zillow — rent increases have outpaced wage increases nearly threefold since the start of the coronavirus pandemic. Specifically, rent prices in Atlanta have increased by 35.6% while wages have risen by a mere 12.2% over the same four-year period. The constant rise in rent is forcing Georgia tenants such as Masika Nyaku to leave the Atlanta area and Georgia altogether. When asked to renew her lease, she was told that the rent for her apartment would be increasing by a crushing $300 per month or $3,600 over the course of a year. She told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution in June that she would leave Georgia for a cheaper state as soon as her daughter graduates from high school. Meanwhile, she was planning to downsize to a one-bedroom apartment.
Today, Georgians who should have the financial freedom to remain food secure, support their families and make timely payments are now struggling just to pay their inflated rent and keep a roof over their heads. Our entire state loses when renters take home less money. Less disposable income means less success for Georgia’s small businesses and the overall economy. Georgia is renowned for its balanced budget and AAA credit rating. Now, we must fight for renters with the same intensity that we fight for our balance sheet.
As chairwoman of the Senate Committee on Urban Affairs, I will continue to provide Georgians with a platform to voice their issues at our meetings. They are, no doubt, some of our state’s fiercest advocates for change, and each heartbreaking story they share only further motivates me to hold these greedy landlords accountable. I fought during the 2023 and 2024 legislative sessions to lower rent costs by introducing Senate Bill 125, which would have lifted the 1984 statewide ban on rent control, placing control back with counties and municipalities.
President Joe Biden is on our side, too, having called on Congress to make the American dream a reality for more families by passing the Biden-Harris housing plan. The plan, in addition to focusing on housing, would cap rent increases on existing units to no more than 5%. As federal authorities begin to grasp the scope of rental price fixing fully, I will continue to make it my mission to ensure all Georgians see this issue for what it is: entirely unjust for all renters and disproportionate in the way it affects our state’s most marginalized communities.
Donzella James, a Democrat, is chair of the Committee on Urban Affairs in the Georgia Senate, where she represents parts of Douglas and Fulton counties.
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