Hot Take: Landlords Hoard a Basic Need and Profit From Extortion

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Some of the biggest villains to emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic were landlords. During the lockdowns, there was a moratorium on kicking people out for not paying their rent. Unelected CDC Director Rochelle Walensky signed a 60-day eviction moratorium where landlords faced a potential $100,000 fine and one year in jail for “breaking the law,” or, if the eviction resulted in death, a fine of $250,000.

And then there are those like Nina Turner, who just posted again last week:

Housing is a human right. Period.

— Nina Turner (@ninaturner) December 27, 2024

No, it’s not. Period.

And then there are squatters who are being granted more rights than the property owners. It’s not a glamorous life being a landlord. But some apparently think landlords just sit in their mansions and collect rent because they’re mean people. Check out this hot take:

Landlords like to act as if they’re simply receiving compensation for a service when the reality is that they’re hoarding a basic need and profiting off of functional extortion – giving you an option between paying them or living on the street and pretending they’re benevolent. https://t.co/qEHa0g8IH0

— James Ray 🔻 (@GoodVibePolitik) December 30, 2024

Landlords contribute to the housing supply by adding more units, creating jobs and increasing inventory. They’re not hoarding anything, houses don’t just grow out of empty lots.

— Steven (@stevenxlml) December 30, 2024

There are definitely issues in the rental market, but anyone who posts something like this might as well announce they’re incapable of thinking critically about how economics works. https://t.co/WOzCCulfpl

— Mark Hemingway (@Heminator) December 31, 2024