Rent Ceiling in Commercial Real Estate

A rent ceiling is the highest price that a landlord can charge for rent. In most cases, rent ceilings apply to multifamily properties and are a result of city and/or state rent control regulations. A rent ceiling is only effective if it actually sets rents below the current market rate. While rent ceilings are supposed to make properties more affordable for residents in a specific area, in practice, this isn’t always the result, especially due to increased “black market” costs in the form of key fees and additional rent paid in cash.