Chicago tenants are fighting back by forming unions
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Illustration: Brendan Lynch/Axios
Rent in Chicago is rising faster than any other major city, and tenants are fighting back with unions and rent strikes.
Why it matters: From Rogers Park to Logan Square, renters have organized in recent months to push back against what they say are unaffordable rent hikes and corporate landlords providing lackluster service.
The latest: The All-Chicago Tenant Alliance (ACTA) has called for an eviction moratorium, especially for immigrant renters who are too scared to go to work and losing income because of ICE and Border Patrol raids.
- Fuerzas Activas de la Damen union in Rogers Park announced yesterday tenants are launching a rent strike next month.
Flashback: Belden Sawyer Tenant Association (BSTA) in Logan Square and Las Fuerzas Inquilinos de Broadway y Cuyler in Buena Park launched rent strikes earlier this year after learning their buildings' new owner, Drew Millard, announced plans to renovate and raise rents.
- Millard tells Axios both buildings are being redeveloped. BTSA ended its strike in September after reaching a deal, and tenants must move out by Oct. 31.
- In Buena Park, tenants in 10 units remain on strike, though Millard says he's helped relocate residents from the other 28 units.
What they're saying: "A very common kind of call that we get is a landlord just raising rent because they don't like the tenant," Jonah Karsh from Metropolitan Tenants Organization (MTO) tells Axios.
- "The tenant has been complaining about repairs. And in many cases, that's illegal retaliation, but that's not something that a tenant can't easily defend themselves against without going to court."
Reality check: Anyone can form a tenant union, but groups like MTO and ACTA help with organizing.
What we're watching: MTO is pushing a few pieces of legislation on the municipal and statewide level, including the Just Cause for Eviction ordinance which would limit the reasons a landlord can refuse to renew a lease.
- It's stuck in city council committee.