but now landlords looking to capitalize on rising rents are less willing to accept the strict guidelines of her rental voucher. how critical is the hud voucher to your existence? that is our existence. without it, we would be homeless. reporter: rents are rising across the country. up a record nearly 20% on average in two years. double that in cities like memphis, tampa, and riverside, california. but the miami-palm beach area tops them all at 58%, nearly three times the national average. when there s a hurricane, it s illegal for gas stations to jack up the prices. why is there not a cap in the state of florida? why am i looking at a 43% increase? reporter: in fact, it s illegal in florida to impose rent controls. sarah espinoza is facing a 106%
an attorney for her landlord tells cnn rising property taxes and mortgage rates are to blame. i freaked out. we can t afford. can t do it. there s a housing affordability crisis. home prices are sky high, forcing more americans into a competitive rental market. gillmain, a single mom and disabled veteran, is reliant on rental assistance from housing and urban development. she already had fewer options, but now landlords looking to capitalize on rising rents are less willing to accept the strict guidelines of her rental voucher. how critical is the voucher to your existence? that is our existence. without it, we would be homeless. rents are rising across the country. up a record nearly 20% on average in two years. double that in cities like memphis, tampa, and riverside,
tells cnn rising property taxes and mortgage rates are to blame. i freaked out. we can t afford it, can t do it. reporter: there is a housing affordability crisis. home prices are sky high, forcing more americans into a competitive rental market. and she is a single mom and disabled veteran and relies on assistance from hud. and now landlords looking to capitalize on rising rents, they are willing to accept the strict guidelines of her rental voucher. how critical is the hud voucher to your existence? that is our existence. without it, we would be homeless. reporter: rents are rising across the country. up a record nearly 20% on average in two years. double that in cities like memphis, tampa and riverside, california.
but now landlords looking to capitalize on rising rents are less willing to accept the strict guidelines of her rental voucher. how critical is the hud voucher to your existence? that is our existence. without it we would be homeless. reporter: rents are rising across the country, up a record nearly 20% on average in two years. double that in cities like memphis, tampa and riverside, california. but the miami palm beach area tops them all at 58%. nearly three times the national average. when there s a hurricane, it s illegal for gas stations to jack up the prices. why is there not a cap in the state of florida? why am i looking at a 43% increase? reporter: in fact, it s illegal in florida to impose rent controls. gives me a lot of anxiety. reporter: sara is facing a
guidelines of her rental voucher. how critical is the hud voucher to your existence? that is our existence, without it, we would be homeless. reporter: rents are rising across the country. up a record nearly 20% on average in two years. double that in cities like memphis, tampa, and riverside, california. but the miami/palm beach area tops them all at 58%. nearly three times the national average. when there s a hurricane, it s illegal for gas stations to jack up the prices. why is there not a cap in the state of florida? why am i looking at a 43% increase? reporter: in fact, it s illegal in florida to impose rent controls. actually gives me a lot of anxiety. reporter: sarah is facing a 106% increase on her rent in coral gables, florida. try to put it together. reporter: for 22 years, she s