&gt; Interestingly some evidence shows that those living in rent-controlled flats in New York also tend to have higher median incomes than those who rent market-rate apartments.<p>This isn&#x27;t surprising at all.  Whenever you have a constrained resource with a price cap you still pay more.  It&#x27;s just that you don&#x27;t pay more in money (at least, not directly).  It becomes a matter of who you know, and people with money are better able to get to know people.