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Questions 40-50
Rent control is the system whereby the local government
tells building owners how much they can charge their tenants
in rent. In the United States, rent controls date back to at
least World War II.

In 1943 the federal government imposed rent controls to
help solve the problem of housing shortages during wartime.
The federal program ended after the war, but in some locations,
including New York City, controls continued. Under
New York's controls, a landlord generally cannot raise rents
on apartments as long as the tenants continue to renew their
leases. In places such as Santa Monica, California, rent controls
are more recent. They were spurred by the inflation of
the 1970's, which, combined with California's rapid population
growth, pushed housing prices, as well as rents, to record
levels. In 1979 Santa Monica's municipal government ordered
landlords to roll back their rents to the levels charged in 1978.
Future rents could only go up by two-thirds as much as any
increase in the overall price level.

In any housing market, rental prices perform three functions:
(1) promoting the efficient maintenance of existing
housing and stimulating the construction of new housing, (2)
allocating existing scarce housing among competing claimants,
and (3) rationing use of existing housing by potential renters.

One result of rent control is a decrease in the construction
of new rental units. Rent controls have artificially depressed
the most important long-term determinant of profitability -
rents. Consider some examples. In a recent year in Dallas,
Texas, with a 16 percent rental vacancy rate but no rent
control laws, 11,000 new housing units were built. In the same
year, in San Francisco, California, only 2,000 units were
built. The major difference? San Francisco has only a 1.6
percent vacancy rate but stringent rent control laws. In New York
City, except for government-subsidized construction, the only
rental units being built are luxury units, which are exempt
from controls. In Santa Monica, California, new apartments
are not being constructed. New office rental space and
commercial developments are, however. They are
exempt from rent controls.
40. What does the passage mainly discuss?
(A) The construction of apartments in the United States.
(B) Causes and effects of rent control
(C) The fluctuations of rental prices
(D) The shortage of affordable housing in the United States.
41. The word "They" in line 9 refers to
(A) the tenants
(B) their leases
(C) places
(D) rent controls.
42. Which of the following was NOT a reason for the introduction of rent controls in Santa Monica, California?
(A) Rapid population growth
(B) Inflation
(C) Economic conditions during wartime
(D) Record-high housing prices
43. The phrase "roll back" in lines 11-12 is closest in meaning to
(A) credit
(B) measure
(C) vary
(D) reduce
44. The word "stimulating" in line 15 is closest in meaning to
(A) experimenting with
(B) identifying
(C) estimating
(D) encouraging
45. It can be inferred that the purpose of rent control is to
(A) protect tenants
(B) promote construction 本论文由英语论文网提供整理，提供论文代写，英语论文代写，代写论文，代写英语论文，代写留学生论文，代写英文论文，留学生论文代写相关核心关键词搜索。