This is a big problem with no near term solutions in sight. Yes, you have migrants competing for shelter driving up the cost. You also had massive appreciation in home values and very low interest rates that people are locked into multiple homes earning rental income. You have big investors who buy up entire neighborhoods for the rental income. You have people who own several properties with the goal of renting them on AirBnB. You have high cost of new construction which includes lengthy and expensive permitting and inspections.
Now, we also have much higher interest rates; and the re-assessment of property taxes at these much higher housing valuations. All this and more are huge problems for renters and would be home buyers. The owning class are sitting good and unless they absolutely have to, have little incentive to sell, less incentive to move, and naturally no incentive to be any more competitive for rental prices than they need to be. There is no solution in sight without major reforms. It may take some action by the citizens using public initiatives to put caps on permitting costs and delays, property tax protections, and even letting renters take a property tax deduction like homeowners do. Government would be loathe to see anything like that.
It seems like a conundrum for us conservatives.
We conservatives believe in free markets, and the housing market has evolved to where both rents and housing prices have escalated beyond the reach of many people. Yet if this is the free market in action , what can we conservatives say about that if it’s truly a free market phenomenon?