Housing is taking center stage this election season, and Vice President Kamala Harris is putting her foot down—though it appears she may have left tenants behind. While she’s championing plans to tackle the housing crisis, her rhetoric often leaves out the words ‘renters’ and ‘tenants.’ This is notable, especially as more than 100 million Americans fall under the category of tenants, battling rising rents and economic challenges every day.
During her campaign, Harris has made housing issues a key component of her strategy, glimpsed during her nomination speech and her recent debate against former President Donald Trump. Surprisingly, during these high-profile events, she missed opportunities to address the very tenants who desperately need representation. Renters often find themselves ignored, even as the crisis looms larger than ever.
Yet, there was hope for tenants earlier this summer. At a campaign stop right after President Biden exited the race on July 30, Harris seemed to support his proposed rent cap policy, which aims to limit rent hikes by corporate landlords. "We will take on corporate landlords and cap unfair rent increases," she declared to applause, igniting hope among tenant advocates. This proposal seeks to restrict annual rent increases to 5% for larger landlords seeking key tax write-offs, impacting approximately 20 million rental units.
Though hopeful, this plan hinges on congressional approval, with the current Republican-led House presenting barriers to its realization. With Harris’s backing, this proposal stands as the only thread of hope tenants have for federal rent stabilization. It’s worth noting this willingness to tackle tenants’ predicaments follows several actions by the Biden administration during the pandemic aimed at tenant protections. A brief eviction moratorium offered respite, albeit for too short a duration, coupled with funding for tenant organizations and the drafting of a “Blueprint for a Renters Bill of Rights.”
Harris's campaign now promises to expand on Biden’s home-building initiatives. While these efforts seem promising, direct protections for tenants appear sidelined. For example, Harris’s rally statement signaling her intent to challenge corporate landlords now remains one of the sole references to tenant protection within her wider housing strategy. Her recent campaign statements lack clarity about how she will protect tenants from the daily struggles imposed by rising rents.
Interestingly, during her years as Vice President, Harris had the chance to enact policies with real teeth. The Biden administration had the authority to introduce rent caps affecting landlords benefiting from taxpayer support but opted not to pursue this route. By not acting, the message seems to be shifting blame to future Democrats rather than taking action now, leaving tenants to suffer the consequences.
Fast forward to more recent weeks, Harris’s position has grown more ambiguous. Key phrases like “rent cap” have vanished from her official plans. While she does proclaim intentions to build 3 million new homes, the timeline for such plans raises questions—especially when tenants urgently need immediate relief.
The housing crisis reflects startling statistics, with over 22 million renter households classified as cost-burdened—meaning they spend over 30% of their income on rent. The rising costs present distressing trends, showing median rents climbed 21% since 2001 against only minimal income growth during the same period. For every $100 increase in rent, the Department of Housing and Urban Development reports homelessness rises by 9%, alarming figures hinting at the growing crisis.
Despite the strong rhetoric around addressing housing woes, Harris’s campaign appears hesitant to commit to tangible policy proposals. An official policy memo from August presented housing strategies, only to sidestep specific approaches to enforce rent caps. Instead, vague language implies tackling corporate landlord practices without laying out concrete steps to actually lower rents for struggling Americans.
On top of this uncertainty, housing advocates expressing their concerns seem to fear Harris’s proposals may offer landlords new tools to maneuver around existing regulations rather than empowering tenants. The remarks made during her debate also reflected this inconsistency. With specifics around lowering rent absent from those discussions, the urgency to address this crisis for tenants remains sidelined.
Public pressure has mounted on her campaign to articulate more than just the stark contrasts to her rivals. With her official website recently updated, she finally outlines some of her housing policies. Yet tenants are left with little assurance. Harris’s only explicit commitment focuses on the fundamental knowledge of high rents and vague promises to outlaw corporate price-fixing practices.
The repercussions of her choices are ominous, particularly in her home state of California, where initiatives aim to repeal existing restrictions on local rent control measures. Notably, the campaign backing “Yes on 33” utilized her rally quotes to advocate for capping rents. But after inquiries arose about her endorsement of this measure, the ad was pulled back without any confirmation from Harris’s camp, signaling confusion and reluctance on her part to champion tenant-friendly policies.
Despite the pressing needs, it often feels like Harris’s agenda prioritizes building new homes over immediate actions needed for current renters struggling to make ends meet. The increasing awareness of the growing homeless population, fueled by spiraling rental costs, calls for urgent reevaluation of existing housing policies.
The Harris strategy, as far as it stands, seems focused on construction rather than pressing tenant protections. With promises to oversee the creation of new homes and offering financial assistance to first-time homebuyers, one must wonder if these measures will genuinely aid tenants who need solutions right now. Potentially, these strategies may just serve to raise housing prices rather than alleviate them.
The true test will come down to whether Kamala Harris’s prospective presidency can pivot this narrative and find ways to heal the wounds of the housing crisis. The mounting anxieties about rent hikes, homelessness rates, and tenant protections create immediate urgency. Will Harris’s housing policies evolve quickly enough to protect tenants who feel increasingly abandoned during this pivotal time?
Finally, as Election Day approaches, the question remains: Is Kamala Harris truly listening to the millions of Americans struggling to pay rent? Tenant advocates are awaiting substantive responses, urging her campaign to address the real needs of renters, rather than vague promises about housing construction far off on the horizon. The time to act is now, and Harris’s resolve will be tested as she takes on the looming housing crisis head-on.
