4 ms·

I don't buy it. Even with strong rent control or tenant rights laws, there's still a glut of profit to be extracted as a landlord. I understand the arguments, a

I don't buy it. Even with strong rent control or tenant rights laws, there's still a glut of profit to be extracted as a landlord. I understand the arguments, and somewhat agree with the purported models of behavior that say rent control will make things worse or at best maintain the status quo. The whinging about rent control strikes me as misunderstanding the differences between modern rent control legislation and the policies of the 20th century, and also pure libertarian whinging. The arguments against rent control are econ 101 mealy mouth crap that is not even representative of all econ theory. I own four houses outright and rent three of them out to families, and I'm currently invested in a quadplex whose rents I use to pay the loan off; and I'm about to leverage all of these properties to invest in a 20 unit apartment complex. Even considering taxes, maintenance, legal expenses, etc. I am pulling in so much raw cash that I foresee that I will be able to expand my business indefinitely -- even with Oregon's new rent control and tenant rights law.

deelowe 7y ago
I'm a landlord too and would love rent control in my area. No where else is a 8-10% increase year over year tolerable, but in rent controlled areas, it's the norm.
- CriticalCathed 7y ago
  It really isn't. You pretend like rent control laws force everyone to raise rent every year double the rate of inflation. That isn't the case, and if they did they'd price themselves out of the market. Rents are competitive in Oregon, and I imagine they'll get even more competitive. The biggest hassle with rental property, as you are well aware I am sure, isn't the government -- it's shitty tenants.
  - deelowe 7y ago
    The biggest hassle is maintenance and turnover. I've never had a shitty tenant in over 10 years of operation b/c I do a good job screening. It'd be much better if I could lock in a tenant and simply raise the rent each each, but where I live housing is plentiful and if I did that, they'd move.
    - imtringued 7y ago
      Are you implying that rent control will eliminate competing landlords and therefore increase the profit of your existing investments?
      - deelowe 7y ago
        No I'm implying that it allows landlords to collude on pricing without needing to actually meet and discuss it. I can't predict the future of the market so my safe bet is to raise rent each year, because in the event that I desperately need to at some point in the future, I won't be able to.
- refurb 7y ago
  Are you thinking rent control causes rents to go up? It’s usually the other way around.
  - whenchamenia 7y ago
    Under rent control, it is in your best interest as a landlord to utilize the maximum rate increase every year 'just in case' your value goes up faster than your income. Its pretty obvious from the numbers what to do if profit is your goal.
- asdff 7y ago
  When the maximum rent controlled rate increase is set above the market rate increases, it's not going to affect prices.
  - speedplane 7y ago
    > When the maximum rent controlled rate increase is set above the market rate increases, it's not going to affect prices. In theory, if real estate was a perfectly competitive market you'd be right. But by setting a standard well-known rent control rate, it sets a standard that landlords can follow. It allows landlords to act in concert and collude on rent increases without any direct communication between them.
seibelj 7y ago
You claim that supply and demand is nonsense Econ 101 then humble brag about your burgeoning rental income empire? So you want the government to take your money?
- CriticalCathed 7y ago
  I'm more than happy to pay my fair share in taxes. Honestly, I think they should scale much more quickly with income. The real estate stuff isn't even my main job, it's a side business. I'm a full time software engineer.
  - refurb 7y ago
    You sound like a greedy landlord extracting rents while adding no value! Part of the problem!
    - CriticalCathed 7y ago
      Pretty much. It's absolutely predatory. That's why I'm investing in building the 20 unit complex. At least it's not just me printing free money that way.
  - seibelj 7y ago
    I hope you get your wish of paying more taxes, but failing that, you are allowed to voluntarily pay more taxes if you feel guilty about your "glut of profit".

deelowe 7y ago

I'm a landlord too and would love rent control in my area. No where else is a 8-10% increase year over year tolerable, but in rent controlled areas, it's the norm.

CriticalCathed 7y ago
It really isn't. You pretend like rent control laws force everyone to raise rent every year double the rate of inflation. That isn't the case, and if they did they'd price themselves out of the market. Rents are competitive in Oregon, and I imagine they'll get even more competitive. The biggest hassle with rental property, as you are well aware I am sure, isn't the government -- it's shitty tenants.
- deelowe 7y ago
  The biggest hassle is maintenance and turnover. I've never had a shitty tenant in over 10 years of operation b/c I do a good job screening. It'd be much better if I could lock in a tenant and simply raise the rent each each, but where I live housing is plentiful and if I did that, they'd move.
  - imtringued 7y ago
    Are you implying that rent control will eliminate competing landlords and therefore increase the profit of your existing investments?
    - deelowe 7y ago
      No I'm implying that it allows landlords to collude on pricing without needing to actually meet and discuss it. I can't predict the future of the market so my safe bet is to raise rent each year, because in the event that I desperately need to at some point in the future, I won't be able to.
refurb 7y ago
Are you thinking rent control causes rents to go up? It’s usually the other way around.
- whenchamenia 7y ago
  Under rent control, it is in your best interest as a landlord to utilize the maximum rate increase every year 'just in case' your value goes up faster than your income. Its pretty obvious from the numbers what to do if profit is your goal.
asdff 7y ago
When the maximum rent controlled rate increase is set above the market rate increases, it's not going to affect prices.
- speedplane 7y ago
  > When the maximum rent controlled rate increase is set above the market rate increases, it's not going to affect prices. In theory, if real estate was a perfectly competitive market you'd be right. But by setting a standard well-known rent control rate, it sets a standard that landlords can follow. It allows landlords to act in concert and collude on rent increases without any direct communication between them.

seibelj 7y ago

You claim that supply and demand is nonsense Econ 101 then humble brag about your burgeoning rental income empire? So you want the government to take your money?

CriticalCathed 7y ago
I'm more than happy to pay my fair share in taxes. Honestly, I think they should scale much more quickly with income. The real estate stuff isn't even my main job, it's a side business. I'm a full time software engineer.
- refurb 7y ago
  You sound like a greedy landlord extracting rents while adding no value! Part of the problem!
  - CriticalCathed 7y ago
    Pretty much. It's absolutely predatory. That's why I'm investing in building the 20 unit complex. At least it's not just me printing free money that way.
- seibelj 7y ago
  I hope you get your wish of paying more taxes, but failing that, you are allowed to voluntarily pay more taxes if you feel guilty about your "glut of profit".