The National Rental Home Council: How America’s Largest Single-Family Landlords Put Profit over People
Across the entire country home prices are skyrocketing, with tenants in single-family rentals facing a particularly tight squeeze. This is especially true in the same communities where the 2008 foreclosure crisis devastated communities, and communities of color in particular. Amid the devastation of the foreclosure crisis Wall Street-backed companies saw an opportunity to scoop up discounted homes by the thousands and to reap massive profits.
As the largest corporate landlords began to face scrutiny, they formed the National Rental Home Council to present a much friendlier image of their industry.
This report examines who the National Rental Home Council’s priorities, especially in light of the fact that the Council’s leadership has been dominated by the largest single-family landlords in the country, each of which have concerning track records on evictions, shocking rent increases, a strategy of charging fines and fees to their renters, dangerous underinvestment in maintenance, and more.
What we see is a picture of what happens when we allow corporate greed to run rampant in our homes. Fortunately tenants across the country living in these homes are fighting back. We must listen to their demands of organizations like the NRHC and elected officials to ensure everyone has a safe, quality, truly affordable place to call home.