ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — Now that the Orange County Board of Commissioners has decided to appeal a recent court order blocking a temporary rent control measure from taking effect, residents are waiting to see what exactly happens next. 

For renter Ronda Wallace, who works with Florida Rising, the commissioners’ 5-2 decision to appeal was a huge relief.

“This is a good day for me (and) for Orange County,” she said. 

Wallace said she recently learned her rent in the Metrowest area of Orange County was increasing by nearly 20% — a familiar story by now in the greater Orlando region, which has recently experienced some of the country’s fastest rent inflation in the country. 

Wallace said she’s encouraged by local leaders’ efforts to stay the course, and keep trying to push their rent control measure through to the finish line.

“I feel like this is the beginning of them actually seeing the other side of that coin, you know?” Wallace said. “People are working two or three jobs, and I’ve been blessed that I’m only working one. I’m able to get overtime, but just imagine the people who aren’t in those stable situations: That’s who I think about.”

Angela Jaspon, a Realtor with Home Wise Realty Group, said she’s empathetic to how the region’s skyrocketing rental rates are affecting people and has noticed more people struggling to afford housing.

“What I’m seeing more and more of lately is when people are buying houses, it’s multigenerational,” Jaspon said. “You’re seeing more people in a household, because they’re all helping each other,” Jaspon said. “And that’s just kind of across the board, whether it’s renting or buying.”

She said she is fully supportive of Orange County’s new rental notice ordinance, which took effect this summer. The ordinance requires landlords to notify their tenants in writing 60 days before implementing any rental increase above 5% — and it’s already helped some renters stay stably housed.

“I do think it’s good that now, you can call 311 and report if you think you weren’t given proper notice,” Jaspon said. “I mean, you have some protection now, as a renter. But again, that’s if you’re already in place. I think the struggle is more about those increases, and getting into a place.”

Orange County officials said Thursday that since the rental notice ordinance took effect, 22 landlords have been investigated for potential violations, with five currently “in the process.” No landlords have yet been punished for violating the ordinance — which would involve a civil citation, similar to a parking ticket. 

Jaspon suggested renters worried about fluctuating rental prices could look into first-time homebuyer programs or other forms of assistance — like the Hometown Heroes program, which provides closing cost and down payment assistance for teachers, firefighters and other eligible first responders. 

“You could buy a two-bedroom condo and be paying less than you are to rent it … and you would have a set payment,” she said. 

However, Jaspon acknowledged that homeownership might not be immediately possible for some renters who may struggle to pass a background check, or prove they earn three times the cost of rent — an increasingly common requirement, in her experience.

“It’s definitely not a set guideline, but I’ve seen it across the board,” she said. “Anytime someone asks me to check on a rental for them, it generally always says that. And you’re having to pay an application fee on almost all of these, and you may not get it at all … I mean, it gets really expensive.”

While Jaspon says she feels for struggling renters, she doesn’t like the idea of strict, permanent rent control. She said some of her out-of-state clients have heard about the ongoing rent control debate in Orange County, and expressed their concern about potentially not being able to raise rent prices moving forward.

“I’m a real estate person,” Jaspon said. “So I believe in owning real estate, and it’s your property — so for me, as a homeowner and owning property, I wouldn’t want someone to be able to control what I could personally rent my property for.”

That said, Jaspon said she understands both sides of the issue — and why an emergency, short-term form of rent control might be necessary.

“I know we’re in a difficult time right now,” she said. “And I know that the ordinance that they’re proposing is just for a year. I don’t think you put something in long-term — if this is a temporary measure to help people, then I think that’s a good thing.”

The plaintiffs in the case, the Florida Realtors and Florida Apartment Association, maintain that the county’s proposed rent control measure is illegal under state law, and should not move forward.

In a written statement, FAA’s executive vice president Chip Tatum said:

“Neither the election results, nor the county’s decision to file an appeal to Florida’s Supreme Court, change the fact that this flawed and illegal rent control measure has already been invalidated. This decision further demonstrates the BCC’s disregard for the law and taxpayer resources.”