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If it has to be build to rent, I would rather the housing be publicly owned. I'm not really a fan of media spruiking how good corporate dominance over more of our lives is.
For all the shit people give commie blocks, I would much rather a stable commie block to live in that I know I won't have to move from than the constant anxiety of whether I will have to find a new home for my family.
I would rather the housing be publicly owned
I agree. Everyone seems to ignore there's no motivation for investors to make homes for the poor. They're all fighting over the "higher margin" investments.
I think the advantage of doing it privately is that some company is footing the bill if there's structural issues and that the government doesn't need to issue more debt.
Corporate landlords come with their pluses and minuses for renters. In Berlin, the big corporates became dominant and hiked rents up to unreasonable levels, forcing a union-like response from residents:
And there is still a shortage of flats to rent in Berlin (actually much worse than Melbourne/Sydney)... go figure.
This is where we need good and strong regulation, especially when it relates to something as essential as where people live.
Did anything actually happen as a result of that?