rent

The Republican bill was prompted by legislation in Kansas City and other communities that banned landlords from denying leases to renters on the grounds that they receive housing assistance, such as Section 8 vouchers.

Last summer, Kansas City banned landlords from rejecting tenants solely because of how they pay their rent, their credit score, or previous evictions. Now, a Missouri Republican representative, who's a landlord himself, wants to overturn that law.

As the cost to buy a home continues to rise in the Midwest, real estate experts say the regional rental market offers affordable housing options and biding your time before buying may be the smart move in 2025.

KC Tenants say they want Healthy Homes to enforce consequences for landlords who fail to address health code violations. Kansas City Health Department representatives say all documented issues at Quality Hill Towers were resolved, but tenants report little to no improvements.

Your landlord is required by law to provide heat and utilities like hot water in cold weather. Here’s how to make sure that happens.

Tenant unions in Kansas City and Independence started a rent strike in October in response to deteriorating living conditions that went unaddressed by landlords. There have been some small improvements since, but residents have also experienced what they consider retaliation.

Independence's Twin Drive-In, owned by the B&B Theatres chain, is shutting down after its landlord increased its rent by 350%. Its absence will leave just one drive-in movie theater in the Kansas City region.

At the risk of eviction, tenants at Quality Hill Towers and Independence Towers launched a coordinated rent strike over what they say are poor conditions and rising prices. They're recruiting more residents to join, and pushing for help from federal housing authorities.

Tenants at two apartment complexes in the Kansas City area are now withholding rent payments, in the city’s first rent strike since 1980. Rent strikes are illegal in Missouri, but residents say it's worth the risk, after dealing with deteriorating living conditions and a lack of maintenance.

KC Tenants announced this week that it is a founding local of the Tenant Union Federation, a national union of unions that aims to organize for renter protections at the federal level.

The Kansas City, Missouri-based tenants rights advocacy group joined other tenants unions in Illinois, Connecticut, Kentucky and Montana to form the Tenant Union Federation. TUF hopes to create more effective organizing practices among tenants nationwide and push for federally regulated rent control.

Nationwide, rents and the cost of living are increasing. Eviction filings are "a great indicator of housing insecurity," says a researcher from Princeton University's Eviction Lab.