rent strike

Members of the Belden Sawyer Tenant Association were unable to stop their homes from being converted into luxury apartments. But they’ve remained united, opening membership to the whole city and fighting to give tenants the right to purchase their homes.

A tenant organizing push in the Twin Cities has support from labor unions representing more than 25,000 workers.

As the single-family rental market grows, tenant organizers are adapting their tactics to a housing landscape that stretches across neighborhoods—with no shared spaces, and often, no clear landlord.

As more than 5,000 rent-stabilized units connected to the Pinnacle Group prepare to go up for auction in 2026, residents warn would-be buyers not to overlook the years of disrepair that made those units unlivable.

A victory in Kansas City suggests that the tactics of organized labor can work for tenants.

Kansas City tenants launched a rent strike in October. With a new administration coming into office, it might be too late for a federal rent cap—but they’re still pushing for better conditions.

The National Tenants Union fought for tenant rights in the 1970s and early 1980s. One of the union’s founders reflects on the organization and what we might learn from those times.

Tenant organizers across the country—in places like Virginia, Louisiana, and New York—have taken direct action against surging eviction cases through tactics like mass outreach, shutting down court hearings, and picketing lawyers who represent landlords.

The growing organizing demand raises a host of questions for the affordable housing movement.

Organizers calling for the cancellation of rent are taking to digital platforms to get the word out about the action, where tenants will withhold some or all of their rent until their conditions are met.

Though slumlords are not directly to blame for our nation’s wealth disparities, they profit from them. Seizing their property and giving it to tenants would produce a more just and equitable outcome than what has been practiced in the past.

In the face of high rent increases and substandard housing, many tenants are realizing they are not alone in their landlord troubles and are joining together to push for building-level wins, and policy change.