, Columnist
How Did Landlords Become Coronavirus Villains?
Tenants struggling to pay this month’s rent can blame decades of regulation and NIMBYism.
We’re not gonna pay rent.
Photographer: Jason Redmond/AFP/Getty ImagesThis article is for subscribers only.
The May rent strike is upon us. Tenants across the country are being called upon to withhold payments to demand, among other things, some form of national rent relief. But although it’s easy to understand the general frustration, we shouldn’t take out our national anger on landlords.
Yes, in the current emergency, people are suffering. And given that the inability of many to meet their monthly expenses is a byproduct of government policies that have put them out of work, temporary rent relief makes a lot of sense. But it’s hard to see why in the current crisis the landlord has suddenly become the enemy.