Upper Valley Tenants Union
Upper Valley Tenants Union
Safe and stable homes for all in the Upper Valley region of VT & NH
ABOUT US
We are a tenant-led movement fighting for the basic human right to housing. We are here to use our collective power to fight back against exploitative landlords and demand that our governments and institutions ensure safe and affordable homes for all.
REMEMBER... your landlord works for you!
Tenant Power
Landlords have too much power over the lives of tenants. Tenants should have a say in the condition, safety, and price of their homes.
Our primary organizing goal is to build collective strength to take this power away from landlords and put it in the hands of tenants.
Permanent Homes
Housing is a fundamental human right. We envision an end to the exploitation of tenants of all races, creeds, genders, and income levels.
Additionally, factors like credit scores and eviction histories should not prevent people from having a safe and stable home.
Affordable Rents
Rents are too high for the average person in the Upper Valley. Everyone in the region knows it, and the data backs it up.
We need to organize to keep our neighbors housed and to demand that local governments take action on affordable housing.
CONTACT US
Need help organizing your neighbors to fight for better living conditions?
Trying to advocate for more affordable housing in your community?
Want to get involved behind the scenes?
Just need to vent about your landlord?
Reach out!
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Does tenant organizing actually work?
Hell yes! There are examples all over the United States of tenants using their collective power to secure fair rents and better living conditions. Here in the Upper Valley, the Upper Valley Tenants Union recently assisted residents of Twin Pines with securing more representation on the Twin Pines Board of Trustees in response to longstanding complaints about living conditions and treatment of residents (read about it here).
- Tenants in Brattleboro, VT successfully fought for a cap on security deposit prices.
- Read success stories from tenants unions in Minnesota, Illinois, and across the country.
Isn't this a problem for the free market to solve?
Hell no! New apartments are going up in the Upper Valley, but they're unaffordable. Upper Valley employers are hiring new workers and can't find them suitable housing they can afford. The truth is that real estate markets have never guaranteed safe and affordable housing for all - just for the wealthy. Members of the working class have always needed to fight for the right to dignified housing against exploitative landlords and corporate interests that place profits over people.
Housing insecurity and homelessness are guaranteed outcomes in our capitalist system. We support economic freedom and empowerment of tenants, and oppose our current system that is designed to trap tenants in debt. We support the points of unity promoted by the Autonomous Tenant's Union Network. To this end, we operate independently of governments, non-profits and do not have professional staff.
We have to use our collective power to fight back.
TENANT RESOURCES
© 2023