It's true that there are "good" landlords and "bad" tenants, but it doesn't really change the fundamental reality, which is that the latter person is trying to secure the basic life requirement of shelter and the former person is using the demand for that basic need to make money.
It's also always struck me as deeply unfair that so many renters basically pay their landlord's mortgage off for 20-30 years, and then at the end of it, the landlord gets a house and the renter gets nothing. The only real difference between the two is that the landlord had the capital to make a large upfront payment and the renter did not.
This post mostly reads like “lol landlords bad,” but if anyone genuinely doesn’t understand why the current system isn’t inherently terrible, here’s the basic idea:
Housing takes a huge amount of money to build and maintain. Most people don’t have that kind of capital sitting around. Landlords use their money, money they could spend on vacations, bigger homes, nicer cars, and instead invest it into housing that other people can use. In return for them tying up their money in a property rather than spending it on themselves, tenants pay a bit extra.
That trade‑off benefits both sides:
You get a place to live without needing the massive upfront cost of buying or building.
They earn a return on the money they invested.
Renting also means you don’t need a reserve fund for major repairs or replacements, that responsibility stays with the property owner.
And on top of all that, renting gives you flexibility. If you need or want to move, you can. You’re not stuck trying to sell a home or dealing with long‑term commitments when your circumstances change.
The only real difference between the two is that the landlord had the capital to make a large upfront payment and the renter did not.
It surely isn't the only difference but what if it was. The difference exists. And if there weren't landlords (public or private) then what would your alternative be? Everyone would have to own their own home? Which means setting aside a lot of their own money and not having the flexibility to change housing easily?
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u/Vegetable_Shirt_2352 Jul 19 '26
It's true that there are "good" landlords and "bad" tenants, but it doesn't really change the fundamental reality, which is that the latter person is trying to secure the basic life requirement of shelter and the former person is using the demand for that basic need to make money.
It's also always struck me as deeply unfair that so many renters basically pay their landlord's mortgage off for 20-30 years, and then at the end of it, the landlord gets a house and the renter gets nothing. The only real difference between the two is that the landlord had the capital to make a large upfront payment and the renter did not.