SENATOR MERKLEY INTRODUCES LEGISLATION TO BAN HEDGE FUND OWNERSHIP OF RESIDENTIAL HOUSING
Senator Jeff Merkley
Toggle navigation
Main Menu
HomeNewsIn the NewsNews Article
SENATOR MERKLEY INTRODUCES LEGISLATION TO BAN HEDGE FUND OWNERSHIP OF RESIDENTIAL HOUSING
Wall Street control of large portions of housing markets across America drives up rents, limits homeownership opportunities
Wednesday, November 30, 2022
Washington, D.C. – As our nation continues to face a crisis of housing affordability, Oregon’s U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley introduced the End Hedge Fund Control of American Homes Act, a piece of legislation aimed at ending Wall Street ownership of residential housing. While aspects of the housing crisis— including a supply shortage—will take years to remedy, others can be addressed immediately, including a ban on hedge funds and private equity firms owning and controlling large parts of the American housing market, and in turn dedicate revenue from this bill for down payment assistance to homebuyers.
“Everyone should have a safe, affordable place to call home,” said Senator Merkley. “In every corner of the country, giant financial corporations are buying up housing and driving up both rents and home prices. They’re pouring fuel on the fire of the affordable housing crisis that so many of our communities are facing, leaving working families behind. The housing in our neighborhoods should be homes for people, not profit centers for Wall Street. It’s time for Congress to put in place commonsense guardrails that ensure all families have a fair chance to buy or rent a home in their community at a price they can afford.”
Following the 2008 housing crisis, large private equity firms and hedge funds bought substantial portfolios of foreclosed homes as an investment opportunity. The federal government enabled this growth through bulk sales of federally-backed mortgages and foreclosed properties. This decision excluded ordinary families, and mission- driven non-profits from buying these homes and returning them to families in need of stable housing.
Large scale hedge fund investors are accelerating their harmful takeovers in recent years. Data from 2021 show the fastest year over year increase in hedge fund home purchases in 16 years. For example, in 2021, large hedge fund investors bought 42.8 percent of homes for sale in the Atlanta metro area and 38.8 percent of homes in the Phoenix area.
To meet investor’s return expectations, hedge funds and other investors maximize profits by imposing high rent increases, inflating fees, and delaying home maintenance and improvements, which diminishes the quality of housing over time.
So San Diego, like other medium/large cities has a lot of homeless - now referred to as "unsheltered" - residents. Unlike a lot of places, the county and city seem to be making an effort to do something more constructive than just scraping them up with a bulldozer. A lot of outreach programs, various sheltering facilities, and some degree of protection against public harassment. There is one area in Chula Vista (immediately south of San Diego between SD and Mexico) that is referred to as "the Jungle" located in the intersections of the 54 Freeway, Plaza Bonita Rd. and the 805. It's probably the only area in San Diego County where homeless people are generally left alone and not harassed. There was quite a community in there of tents and other shelter structures. Problem is, the reason nothing is built where the Jungle is is because it's a flood zone. That doesn't matter most of the time, but last week there was enough rain to flush many of them out.
It's a sad mess that really ought to be addressed on a national level instead of leaving to a mish-mash of local activity. It's long past time people should stop saying "do something about the homeless" and start saying "do something for the homeless."
Homeless "unsheltered" numbers aren't' going down. Some places have decent ideas; some don't. But my question remains: why is this considered a local/state issue and not a national issue? There isn't any one size fits all solution, at least in part because not all homeless people are the same or are there for the same reasons. But if data were collected from all over, it's reasonable to think that some clear conclusions could be drawn as to what are effective approaches. A little humane treatment might help, too.
Homeless "unsheltered" numbers aren't' going down. Some places have decent ideas; some don't. But my question remains: why is this considered a local/state issue and not a national issue? There isn't any one size fits all solution, at least in part because not all homeless people are the same or are there for the same reasons. But if data were collected from all over, it's reasonable to think that some clear conclusions could be drawn as to what are effective approaches. A little humane treatment might help, too.
Do you think it has anything to do with the 1%ers stealing the wealth of the middle class and even the poor to the point that it takes a family 2, 3 even 4 incomes to provide a home these days?
trump is just the icing, it was ronnie who destroyed America.
Trump: “We had the safest border in the history of our country - or at least recorded history. I guess maybe a thousand years ago it was even better.”
Do you think it has anything to do with the 1%ers stealing the wealth of the middle class and even the poor to the point that it takes a family 2, 3 even 4 incomes to provide a home these days?
Sure, but even if you could start reversing that, it would take waay too long to be of value to those who are on the street today. And the loss of the middle class wasn't only from bad politics. A lot has been sleazy corporations that take their factories to China or Berzerkistan for cheap labor and wink-wink oversight.
