Exactly who is entitled to live in Albany, CA?

In a letter to the Albany Housing Advisory Commission regarding Rent Stabilization, an Albany landlord posed the following question:

Does everyone have a right to live in Albany, even if they cannot afford it?

When I thought about the question more, I realized that in a city where over half the residents are renters, it is the landlord who decides just who is entitled to live here. This should not be the case. I know Albany appears to be this upper middle class city, but for renters—the majority of our little city’s residents—that is far from the case.

Here are some statistics that shed light on the lives of over half of Albany residents. All figures and information are from the 2023–2031 Albany Housing Element Draft.

Total number of households in Albany – 7,943

Total number of renters in Albany – 3,948

52 percent of Albany renters are cost burdened, which means they spend more than 30 percent of their income on housing 

25 percent of Albany renters are severely cost burdened, which means they spend more than 50 percent of their income on housing

82 percent of extremely low-income renters in Albany spend more than half their income on housing 

45 percent of Asian households in Albany are cost burdened. 

50 percent of Hispanic households in Albany are cost burdened 

70 percent of Black households in Albany are cost burdened. 

18 percent of Albany’s population makes less than $25,000 a year.

Two census tracts in Albany are considered “sensitive communities,” which means they are at a relatively high risk of displacement due to rising rents and lack of tenant protection.

In Oakland, yearly allowable rent increase is the current CPI. As of August 1, 2025, this amount is 0.8 percent. In San Francisco it is 1.4 percent. In Berkeley, 2.1 percent.

But in Albany, the allowable rent increase is unlimited.