De Anza College students are amidst a current housing crisis, with rental rates increasing steadily.

Over 1000 students are unsure about the housing situation, according to a study conducted by the De Anza College Office of Institutional Research and Planning released early June.

Proposition 10 will be on the November ballot and would repeal the current Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act, giving local governments approval for rent control ordinances.

As a renter in San Jose, I have noticed, not only is rent going up, but the demand of housing is apparent.

There is an urgent need for housing supply, but building luxury apartments is not the answer.

I have seen homelessness and crime rates rise higher in past years.

There is a desperation to make ends meet just to pay the rent, but that is only one issue.

Patrick Ahrens, District Director for Assemblymember, Evan Low, is in favor of the proposition and points out: “The housing supply is in crisis mode, let’s look into more housing, expanding transportation, those other issues combined are what will create solutions to this problem.”

In an article by Forbes, those who are opposing this repeal don’t see this as a solution,“If we allow Costa-Hawkins to be repealed, thereby allowing politicians to expand rent control in attempts to make it look like they’re solving the issue of affordable housing, we’re making our cities less affordable in the long term, with worse housing conditions.”

Proposition 10 will have serious implications for everyone and, if passed, we will have more local control from our city officials.

This is good for a temporary need but there are other factors to consider for example:

Due to homeowners viewing their homes as investments, government intervention will impact the value of their homes, sparking debate on future vacancy control laws.

Many college students do not own homes, many rent rooms or studios and thus we must make our voice heard on this matter.

We are the future of the Silicon Valley and we should be the ones heading to the polling booths. If we do not, the wealthy developers and current homeowners will be the only ones heard. I am voting yes on Proposition 10.