People not understanding the actual cost of owning and maintaining a house is my only argument for landlords. Or if you maintain it yourself it's a knowledge and time requirement.

Not saying landlords did a great job maintaining the rentals I've lived in. But there was definitely a point in my life where renting made more sense than owning a house.

We really need more control on rent prices so only high density housing is rentable. Or something, I don't have answers for why my shitty house is worth 70% more than it was 5 years ago.

[–] Bane_Killgrind@lemmy.dbzer0.com 7 points 5 days ago (1 children)

My housing coop charges 38% market rate rent, maintains the common area, has a property manager, and provides units fridge/stove/furnace/AC, on 46 three bedroom townhouses.

So either landlords are wildly inefficient with their expenses, or they are taking a crazy margin over their operating expenses.

[–] pahlimur@lemmy.world 2 points 5 days ago (1 children)

Right, I'm not arguing that landlords are good. They seem to be a symptom of a system set up to encourage their shitty behavior.

I do wonder if a housing co-op is protected by law in some way. Or more likely it relies on a few people having good intentions who are running it. A housing co-op with no intent of profiting, ever, would be a good system imo.

[–] Bane_Killgrind@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 points 4 days ago

Well yeah that's where I live.

There are regional housing federations that deal with helping the governance of these organizations https://www.housinginternational.coop/members/co-operative-housing-federation-of-canada/

These are all non-profits, that have bylaws governing them. If there's a weird situation the coop can go into receivership and a new legal board established to resolve those problems.

[–] grrgyle@slrpnk.net 1 points 4 days ago

You don't need a Lord to maintain a property though. That is the function of a superintendent, which is a role small landlords sometimes assume, and yes that is a job that should be compensated.

But it has nothing to do with owning and rentseeking.

[–] jj4211@lemmy.world 2 points 5 days ago

There are companies that would do the maintenance for you, so I think if that was your concern, you could roll the dice with those while still actually owning the house.

But I will say if you aren't going to be somewhere more than 2 years anyway (university or a work assignment), renting could make sense.