DC Public Library System

The great rent wars, New York, 1917-1929, Robert M. Fogelson

eng

Includes bibliographical references and index

illustrations

index present

non fiction

The great rent wars

bibliography

824608942

Robert M. Fogelson

New York, 1917-1929

"Written by one of the country's foremost urban historians, The Great Rent Wars tells the fascinating but little-known story of the battles between landlords and tenants in the nation's largest city from 1917 through 1929. These conflicts were triggered by the post-war housing shortage, which prompted landlords to raise rents, drove tenants to go on rent strikes, and spurred the state legislature, a conservative body dominated by upstate Republicans, to impose rent control in New York, a radical and unprecedented step that transformed landlord-tenant relations. The Great Rent Wars traces the tumultuous history of rent control in New York from its inception to its expiration as it unfolded in New York, Albany, and Washington, D.C. At the heart of this story are such memorable figures as Al Smith, Fiorello H. La Guardia, and Oliver Wendell Holmes, as well as a host of tenants, landlords, judges, and politicians who have long been forgotten. Fogelson also explores the heated debates over landlord-tenant law, housing policy, and other issues that are as controversial today as they were a century ago"--Provided by publisher

The postwar housing shortage -- Between a rock and a hard place -- A weighty decision -- The great rent strikes -- The mayor's committee on rent profiteering -- Enter the state legislature -- The April laws -- The September laws -- The battle in the state courts -- The fight in the federal courts -- A question of coverage -- A reasonable rent -- The four exceptions -- Landlords and tenants in New York and Albany -- The extension of rent control -- The expiration of rent control