given there are people on the street who are actually homeless and didn't have the opportunity to buy tons of land in the 90's before the housing crisis exploded and continues to get exponentially worse.
And this is the individual homeowner's problem to solve because...? Sounds like a local government problem. Regardless, just because the victim is wealthy doesn't mean you're not victim-blaming.
Thank you! I couldn't give two shits about someone who has forced they're way onto the property of someone who has owned it for 30+ years, and refused to leave. I would hope the common sense response to this would be to give the squatter a free year of housing in the local prison. 540 days of unpaid Airbnb rent x $1,000/day is more than half a million in stolen money, that's a criminal charge.
There is quite literally no excuse for what has happened here outside of failed local government.
Because using space that could be permanently lived in by somebody to instead seek profits as a luxury vacation rental, along with bad housing and tax policies in CA, is exactly the reason we have so many homeless.
1. Too many homeless people
2. Keep making luxury condos and rent them out on AirBnB, while NIMBYs continue to veto affordable higher-density housing developments
3. Blame local government and say it's their problem to fix
The vast majority of homeless are addicts and wouldn't move into free housing if provided, or mentally ill and should be cared for instead of dumped on the street - and also wouldn't remain in free housing even if provided - because they are mentally ill!
If you sincerely think homelessness is just a lack of housing I heartily encourage you to get out from behind your keyboard and go volunteer at a local homeless shelter. Ignorant people such as yourself are our real problem in making meaningful progress towards solving homelessness - luckily ignorance can be overcome if you choose to actually get involved. And it is rewarding when you do reach the occasional folks who are homeless but don't want to be and just need some help getting out. They may be the minority, but there are still many there and they are underserved. Those are the folks I focus on and what inspire me to remain involved.
Saying essentially the same thing twice does not an argument make. I'm sure if you re-read the article, you'll find that #2 doesn't even apply. And you haven't even bothered to refute the idea that it is a local government problem. Don't like it? Talk to the local zoning board. Otherwise, whining about the actions of individuals, assuming the law allows such actions, is going to do fuck-all to solve the problem.
Well, maybe, but "simply don't pay rent" clearly isn't any solution to any housing crisis. Not every landlord is actually rich for starters, and "you're rich enough, so who cares people commit crimes against you?" is not something I'm hugely comfterable with, to put it mildly.
I totally agree about folks needing to pay rent, and that this is a bad situation for the landlord. I do find the slant in defending homeowners' side of things in a place with as much homelessness as LA to be an ... interesting editorial choice.
He played stupid games and won stupid prizes, and even admits further down in the article that the lawsuit is a "principled stance" rather than anything he truly can't resolve through some kind of agreement with the tenant.
