In Oregon, apartments built in the last 15 years are exempt from rent stabilization law - which limits rent increases to 10% a year.
New builds are often owned by large corporations, and many are using AI software to set rents.
During a hearing this week, Cristal DeJarnac, an at-home-care provider, said her family has to move, but can鈥檛 afford anything in the rapidly-growing city of Bend.
"We are a family of five and have three generations living here," said DeJarnac. "With the cost of housing and the shortage of truly affordable housing in Bend, we are uncertain of where we'll live."
Adriana Grant, a policy associate with the Eugene Tenant Alliance, told lawmakers that allowing new buildings to remain exempt from rent increase restrictions and allowing corporate landlords to trade insider information through software undermines the to address the housing crisis.
鈥淐orporate landlords are using these predatory algorithms across the state,鈥� Grant said. 鈥淚f we don鈥檛 act now, Oregonians will continue to be priced out of their homes by software that treats housing as nothing more than a financial asset.鈥�
If the bill moves forward, the rent stabilization exception would be reduced from 15 to seven years. Landlords would be banned from using AI algorithm software to determine rents.
Oregon one of the biggest rent software companies in the U.S., RealPage, last year accusing the company of engaging in anti-competitive activities and violating antitrust law.
Mike Semko, a representative from RealPage, testified during Wednesday鈥檚 hearing, arguing the company鈥檚 software is market analysis, not price fixing. He argued the software is a tool landlords can use to help manage large apartment complexes and banning it is unfair to their industry.
鈥淥ur software does not set prices at all,鈥� he said. 鈥淚n fact our customers accept the pricing suggestion we give them less than 50% of the time, it鈥檚 really only 35% of the time.鈥�
A few groups representing real estate, and multi-family rental companies also testified in opposition, arguing that reducing the rent cap to seven years might make it harder for developers to attract investment and could make building housing less profitable.
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This story comes from the Northwest News Network, a collaboration between public media organizations in Oregon and Washington.