The rental market in Antigua has reached a critical juncture, with escalating prices and stagnant wages creating a dire situation for residents. Despite working full-time or juggling multiple jobs, many individuals find themselves unable to afford basic housing. Landlords, capitalizing on the demand, are raising rents without making necessary property improvements, exacerbating the crisis. The lack of government intervention and regulatory oversight has allowed this issue to spiral out of control, with decision-makers seemingly indifferent to the plight of their constituents. The situation is further aggravated by the practice of property hoarding, where multiple homes remain vacant for years, driving up scarcity and prices. The rental market’s focus on expats and short-term renters, who can afford inflated USD prices, has marginalized locals, pushing them into shared or substandard living conditions well into their 30s and 40s. The silence from policymakers is deafening, raising questions about their priorities and commitment to addressing this pressing issue. Urgent reforms are needed, including rent caps, serious regulations of the rental market, and policies to penalize long-term vacancies. Incentives for long-term rentals and measures to disallow short-term rentals in certain areas could help alleviate the crisis. The time for action is now, as the failure to treat housing as a human necessity rather than a profit machine continues to have devastating consequences for the community.