Is it worse if now there is a special class of people who happened to be in the right buildings at the right time when this law passed who will now forever get discounted rent, leaving everybody else to pay full price?
Under rent control the situation goes from being extremely advantageous to the landlord to just being regular advantageous.
Isn't that why landlords argue they should make profit, because they carry the risk?
In general though, maintenance on average only costs ~150-300$ a month, so it's not necessary.
An important part of the regulation is that the landlord cannot raise the rent when a new tenant moves in - the rent is locked for the unit, not the tenant. This prevents situations like New York, where you are essentially unable to move.
Mumbai did this and it was a disaster: https://marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2017/04/tw...
In Berlin, people that already have social relations and support structures are the one that get discounted rent, which is what we want! This is better than if wealthy people get to pay less for housing. It's not as if the alternative made it cheaper.