• CileTheSane
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    6 months ago

    I am so tired of the argument that “renters can’t afford to buy the property.”

    Is the landlord making a profit? If Rent - Costs = Profit then the people who can afford the rent can afford the costs, and the money that would have been profit for the landlord can instead be savings for emergencies (that the landlord would have paid out of the same funds while still making a profit.)

    • FiniteBanjo@lemmy.today
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      6 months ago

      If renters can continuously pay rent without ever missing a payment for years then yes clearly they could afford a home, but most US Citizens cannot even cover the down payment. Also, most renters end up missing payments pretty frequently. The system needs to change in a way that guarantees homes, but landlords also aren’t inherently in the wrong.

      • CileTheSane
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        6 months ago

        The system is broken, I agree. That doesn’t excuse the people taking advantage of the broken system.

        People regularly vilify scalping (buying something of limited availability and reselling it for a profit) but for some reason when someone does that with shelter, a thing necessary for survival, we get people defending them.

        • FiniteBanjo@lemmy.today
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          6 months ago

          That’s exactly the problem. You’re conflating renting out property with scalping. You’re saying that Rental Owners are all villains, every single one, and that the world we currently live in would be better without them completely. That’s stupid. That just seems like somebody has oversimplified a complicated socioeconomic issue using emotions like fear and hate, and is using that as justification to lose faith in a democratic institution of laws.

          I am defending rental properties, I think it as a concept still exists even in a perfect future, because it enables travelers and low-cost living communities on a larger scale while also allowing specializations for maintenance. I think there are some good people renting out full sized homes for barely enough to cover mortgage and maintenance, and I think a lot of renters probably wouldn’t be able to handle that sort of responsibility on their own and would end up losing their homes and money.

          • CileTheSane
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            6 months ago

            Housing can be affordable or profitable, not both.

            • FiniteBanjo@lemmy.today
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              6 months ago

              Not how businesses work. After expenses, they can make a loss for the fiscal year. It happens a lot more often than you think.

              If you don’t like overcharging in the industry then you should be advocating rent control and proper taxation, not landlord fitted guillotines.

              • CileTheSane
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                6 months ago

                Ah yes, if I’m against landlords I must be arguing in favour of killing all landlords.

                You sound like a reasonable person to continue having a conversation with…