Mexico City Mayor Clara Brugada indefinitely postponed the presentation of the Fair, Reasonable, and Affordable Rent Law initiative, which she proposed eight months ago with the creation of Decree 1. Instead, the Morena party member presented a set of constitutional reforms that stipulate that rent prices cannot rise above inflation.
In a press conference, Brugada acknowledged that the legislative calendar limits the feasibility of approving the reforms in the short term, as the Mexico City Congress will hold its next legislative session in September, unless the representatives decide to hold an extraordinary session.
The Fair, Reasonable, and Affordable Rent Law emerged as Brugada’s response to the anti-gentrification protests that took place between July 4 and 26, which included riots and acts of violence against foreigners.
“This is the first step in the legislative process, which we see as having two stages: first, we made the strategic decision to elevate a set of reforms on rental housing to constitutional status, as well as providing the greatest possible legal protection,” argued the Morena party member this Wednesday, announcing her decision not to immediately present the law announced in July 2025 and, instead, to begin by amending the local Constitution as a prerequisite for its development.
The presented reform modifies Article 9 of the Constitution of Mexico City regarding the right to housing and establishes, as a legal basis, that in residential lease agreements, “the rent may not be increased annually beyond the inflation rate of the previous year, as reported by INEGI (National Institute of Statistics and Geography).”
In addition to the cap on increases, the bill establishes direct obligations for the local government in housing policy. Among these are the implementation of a comprehensive policy to increase the supply of social and affordable housing, as well as the expansion of the land reserve through the acquisition of land for this purpose.
The initiative also includes the creation of a public institution responsible for regulating relations between landlords and tenants, with functions of guidance, mediation, and legal defense for both parties.
In terms of rights, the reform incorporates the recognition of neighborhood and community ties, and establishes that city residents have the right “to social, cultural, economic, and territorial ties, and to remain in the places where they have developed their life projects”; it also mandates the implementation of a public policy against gentrification.
During the question-and-answer session, the Head of Government rejected the notion that the initiative affects private property. “We categorically state that, both in this proposed constitutional reform and in the upcoming proposed Fair Rents Law, private property is in no way affected.”
She also announced that the proposed law will incorporate control mechanisms to enforce rent limits, including a registry of lease agreements.
The Secretary of Welfare and Social Equality, Pablo Yanes Rizo, stated that “there is still a very high level of informality, which affects both tenants and landlords.”
For his part, the Secretary of Administration and Finance, Juan Pablo de Botton, indicated that the proposal was developed through consultations with various sectors and that one of its key aspects is expanding the housing supply: “The solution lies in significantly increasing the housing supply. This means there needs to be more public and private investment to increase supply.”
Source: proceso
