> People are "willing to pay" rents only in the sense that people are willing to give a mugger their watch. That's a silly comparison. You could say that about

> People are "willing to pay" rents only in the sense that people are willing to give a mugger their watch. That's a silly comparison. You could say that about literally any product that's charging more than you feel like paying. > Nobody made land. So why should some people be able to demand money from others for it? Now that is an interesting question. I think there is a strong case to be made against the ownership of land in general. The fact that people have been allowed to own land seems like an odd historical quirk to me. I think it should probably be changed. That, however, does not make rent into extortion. It's still a commodity regulated by the same laws of supply and demand as anything else.