I lived in LA. So low income means you qualify for a housing subsidy like section 8. Rent control means your rent is capped your initial rent plus a 2-9% increase every year depending on inflation.

Yes, a wealthy person can get a rent controlled apartment and live there to benefit from the limit on rent increases. The issue is that landlords don’t maintain the property so you’re getting a 70 year old apartment that feels like a 70 year old apartment. My neighbors would do their own repairs when legally the landlord has to do them because he wouldn’t. It prevents natural turnover in apartments so the next person coming in pays a lot more. I was paying $1000/month more than my neighbors for the same crappy place. I was basically subsidizing them. I’m some cases, they made 3-4x what I made. There was no reason for them to continue in those apartments, but they were able to benefit from it since the next place would have cost double.