Ashland housing crunch prompts rent-hike protest

ASHLAND, Ore. (AP) — A tight housing market in this trendy town is causing rental rates to shoot up and some are protesting hikes of up to $250 a month.

The Ashland Daily Tidings reported Tuesday (http://bit.ly/2ehDTSZ) that the town now has a rental vacancy rate of just 1 to 2 percent and housing costs are 67 percent higher than the average in the rest of the country.

Protesters gathered outside a property management company in Ashland Monday to demonstrate against rental price increases that they say amount to greed.

The issue has been percolating for some time and is now front and center in the City Council and mayoral races.

Ashland — home to the Tony Award-winning Oregon Shakespeare Festival — is about 300 miles south of Portland.