Rent Increases 101 for Tenants
FAQ
- What do tenants need to know about rent control and rent increases?
Rent stabilization, often known as rent control, is one of the affordable housing programs in DC. Many buildings in DC are not rent stabilized, but if a building is rent stabilized (aka rent controlled), there are rules about how much a landlord can raise the rent and how often. To find out if your building is rent stabilized, you can look up your address in the Department of Housing and Community Development records at https://dhcd.dc.gov/service/search-rent-control-records-online or contact the Office of the Tenant Advocate.
Conditions:
If a home is rent stabilized (aka rent controlled), the landlord cannot raise the rent while there are substantial violations of the housing code in the building. Rent increases in those circumstances can be challenged by filing a tenant petition with the Office of Administrative Hearings. For information on how to do that, please contact the OAH self-help center. Please call (202)-442-9094 and select option #4 from the main menu, or send an email to oah.help@dc.gov.
Sale:
The sale of a building generally does not change a tenant’s lease. The new owner becomes the tenant’s new landlord. If a tenant has a current lease, those terms (including the rent amount, the pet policy, etc.) will continue until the lease term ends. The new landlord cannot raise the rent in the middle of a lease term, even if the building is sold. After the lease ends, when your lease becomes month to month, the new landlord can legally raise the rent by providing 30 days notice in writing unless an affordable housing program prevents such a rent increase.
If a building was sold in a foreclosure sale, the purchaser of the foreclosed building also becomes the new landlord of the tenants that live in the building. However, the terms of existing leases may not apply. The new landlord can legally raise rent the with 30 days notice in writing unless an affordable housing program prevents such a rent increase.