Wall Street profiteers crashed the housing market with subprime snake oil, then scooped up vast numbers of single-family homes (SFRs) at foreclosure prices, and now they’re gouging tenants with exorbitant rents.
High shelter costs are a major component of the inflation now ravaging ordinary working Americans. Some of the Democrats in Congress want to do something about it. Here’s what they propose:
“If enacted into law, the proposal would impose ‘a tax on existing and future acquisitions of SFRs’ by large institutional investors …. The legislation would also prohibit federal lending institutions Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and Gennie Mae from purchasing and securitizing mortgages held by Wall Street firms who leverage their size and ability to purchase large numbers single family homes with debt in order to turn around and rent them out for exorbitant profit ….”
This isn’t rent control or “socialism,” although that’s what Republicans will call it. Basically, “Wall Street investors have exploited government policies and a lack of oversight to fleece millions of renters,” and these Democratic lawmakers are simply proposing the government stop helping them rip off renters.
But the key phrase here is, “If enacted into law.” Don’t expect any help from Republicans with this. The GOP is not for wage earners or consumers. If tenants want protection from corporate rent vultures, they need Democratic majorities in Congress. They’ve got two days to elect them.
Read story here.