How corporations in Utah rental market drive up cost of living
May 15, 2023
Fox13 in Utah looked at how some Salt Lake City apartments owned by investment firms and managed by large corporations impose multiple, often unaffordable fees on top of rent in order to generate more income.
Fees are a feature of such ownership and management arrangements, Fox13 explained.
Fox13 Utah, May 4, 2023: How corporations in Utah rental market drive up cost of living
Corporate owners and managers are a factor driving up the cost of living as they control a big share of the rental market in Utah, according to some of the people Fox interviewed.
PESP’s housing and research campaign director Jordan Ash said,“We have seen that in markets where there is a large concentration of corporate landlords, that it’s that is driven up rents.”
“Their playbook involves increasing rents, adding on fees as ways to increase the revenue….Your rent is ending up going to Wall Street basically,” Ash said.
Many investment firms purchase apartments with financing from federally-backed Freddie Mac, Fox13 reported, providing space for policymakers or Congress to help renters.
“Since that’s being subsidized by the taxpayers, (there) should be conditions in terms of how much they can increase rents,” Ash said.
