In Washington D.C., 1 bedroom, 1 bathroom with kitchen apartments are leased or rented for a mere 450 dollars a month. The more you leave housing to the market and God, the lesser would be the rents. The more competition, the lesser the rents. Some landlords are desperate, giveaways amount to 400 dollars. So you see free market would cause prices or rents to settle accordingly to the law of supply and demand. Interference in the market creates recession.