Anyone who grew up in Dorchester in the 1970s, ‘80s, or even the early ‘90s remembers what it was like under rent control. Property values were stagnant or in decline. People loved their neighborhood, but no one could honestly say it was thriving.
As neighbors decided to move or aged out, homes would be bought by other local families because there was no one else buying them. Anyone owning a three-decker could barely cover the mortgage payment from the monthly rent for the first decade or so of owning it.
Thankfully, there were some families – families like the Bakers, where 13 kids fought over socks and underwear – who always knew they would need a place to live and found a way to invest. Now, due to those long-ago investments, many families have risen out of poverty and have been able to build just a bit of generational wealth because voters abolished rent control in 1994. As a result, neighborhoods across the city were reinvigorated and thrived…