As rental prices rise in Utah, it doesn't appear to be due to more rental assistance being available due to COVID. The theory behind that would be that since landlords can expect the federal government to pay the bill -- regardless how much the charge -- they are going to raise rent prices to take advantage of it.
But, the march upward of housing prices has not hit us just since the COVID relief funds became available. No, prices have been rising for years.
And, would you suppose the rental market is being gluttoned because the government is giving rent assistance and so people are not buying houses? Rent is free and buying a house is not, so which would you choose? Well, shoot that theory down, as well. The price of homes rose 30 percent last year. The price of owning homes is rising faster than even rental prices. That, in fact, is seen as a big reason the rental market is being gluttoned: People cannot afford new homes, so they are forced to rent.
Still, it does seem the COVID money should be having some effect. Anytime you give something for free -- anytime you leave the government to pay a bill regardless if it is more than market value would otherwise be -- it seems that would be an impetus for rising prices.
No comments:
Post a Comment