by Mike ‘Mish’ Shedlock
The Street
A bill that would allow rent control in Illinois is gathering steam in the legislature.
Pandora’s Box
Illinois is currently one of 33 states that ban rent control. State Rep. Will Guzzardi’s House Bill 116 repeals Illinois’ statewide ban on local units of government imposing any type of rent control.
It garnered enough votes to pass in the House’s Housing Committee Wednesday [March 24]. Opponents of the legislation compared allowing rent control to opening Pandora’s Box.
“The real estate market has finally begun to recover fifteen years after the market implosion,” said Rep. Sam Yingling, a Rockford Democrat and real estate agent. “It’s important to recognize that many of these landlords are not giant, faceless corporations but rather ‘ma and pa’ investors.”