Georgia, among the most landlord-friendly states in the country, was one of only three that did not require property owners to guarantee the habitability of apartments they rented out. Skyrocketing rents were not translating into better conditions—on the contrary, exorbitant rent hikes were occurring at places that, in many cases, were barely livable. Rats and overflowing sewage, leaking ceilings, black mold, exposed electrical wiring: these were endemic in complexes occupied by the city’s poorest families. Their only recourse was to contact code enforcement. But nothing prevented landlords
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