ID: A Sophie Labelle 4 panel comic featuring Stephie in different poses, saying:

Landlords do not provide housing.

They buy and Hold more space than they need for themselves.

Then, they create a false scarcity and profit off of it.

What they’re doing is literally the opposite of providing housing.

  • jwigglerEnglish
    1•4 hours ago

    Your story is why Im not one to say that landlords are inherently bad people, or similar such statements. Most of us are brought up in a society where we are taught to do what we gotta do to get out of it. Terms like passive income, making your money work for you, investments come to mind. I try not to blame people for playing the game that we are all expected to play.

    Still, you bring up common points defending landlords that were also taught to me through my conservative family. The risk that a landlord typically incures, though, is that they have to sell their property and end up having to become a renter, themselves. I don’t necessarily think that is much of a risk, when the reward is to take a cut of someone’s wages to put toward your own equity. But again, these are statements of theory and I can’t say they apply to every case, whereas you are coming from personal experience.

    In your mom’s case, I’d imagine damage would normally be covered by insurance, but then again I am no expert on renting a home out. I’m sure there are personal frustrations with it, especially if the mortgage is high and the equity is low. I’ll have to think more about the power dynamics in a squatter situation.

    Anyways, I’m sorry to hear about your and your family’s housing struggles, you’ve given me a bit to think about. Hope I didn’t invalidate your experiences

    • @kitnahtEnglish
      1•3 hours ago

      No need to play soft-ball with me; I am not easily angered or offended, I’m just sharing with you the other side of that coin.

      I absolutely agree with you for the most part. Corporate landlording needs to have limitations. There are powers that landlords hold over the tennant as well, and I’m sure there are bad landlords just as there are bad people.

      I wasn’t even aware there was such an insurance for landlords, it doesn’t seem to be something my mother ever purchased. So thanks for that, I learned something.

      Honestly, that’s why I think we need to look beyond “who’s at fault”, and need to start discussing “what are some solutions that could be implemented”. Everyone always focuses on who is to blame, because it’s easy to blame someone, it’s easy to hate others and say to yourself that the game was stacked against you.

      I think it’s also difficult to manage as a politician and/or policy maker. We should start discussing solutions we would like implemented, and get behind those ideas, and push those ideas. It’s much easier to go to a politican and say “We’d like to see these things implemented!”, rather than “Landlords are bad, do something about it!” – That’s mostly the point I wanted to make. I just wish people could come together and discuss: What is the most BASIC issue we’re trying to solve here – People who want houses cannot get them. So we should come from that angle and discuss how to accomplish this - use taxes to build houses with deed restrictions which disallow renting. Or something similar.