The majority of the US has had free market pricing for renting for two centuries, and the scheme you&#x27;re describing has historically been the <i>extreme</i> rarity, not the common.<p>Further, in a market system there&#x27;s no such thing as: &quot;landlords would be able to rise the fee as much as they want.&quot; Not even close. I don&#x27;t believe anyone can fail to understand what happens next when a landlord tries to command ten times their prior rent. People are not hostages, they move.