While Tampa Bay was recently ranked by Zillow as the "hottest" housing market in the nation for homeowners, this spells bad news for renters, who already saw a drastic spike in rent last year.
By all indications, the hot housing market will likely shoot Tampa Bay's rents up even further.
The union said that working families simply cannot afford these massive leaps in rental prices, as a majority of Americans live paycheck to paycheck.
According to Hillsborough and Pinellas Clerk of Court records obtained by CL Tampa Bay, over 8,400 Writs of Possession—the final stage in the eviction process—were issued in 2021. Thousands more evictions were filed with the courts and are being processed.
And currently, even "affordable" housing in Tampa Bay can still make those looking for housing rent burdened—spending 30% or more of their income on rent.
The City of Tampa has told CL that Florida Statue 166.043, which restricts rent control, presents an obstacle that could be costly and complicated. But she did not say rent control is impossible. The rally comes six days before city council hosts a workshop about a "rent stabilization ordinance" on Feb. 24.
"Join us to send a clear message to city council: working people of Tampa demand rent control, nothing less!," TTU wrote.