There is actually a solution, and Britain did it until Thatcher came along, and it worked great: The government buys up a lot of property, and rents it to anyone who wants it at reasonable rates. They’ve got the money to do it, and it brings in income for them anyway, and it pierces the bubble so that private landlords can’t charge “market rates” and send the whole operation into an ever-increasing spiral of both rents and property values.
A lot of British landlords actually wound up selling to the government anyway, since the lack of a bubble means you can’t even make that much from renting out properties as a business venture, so they’d rather just get rid of the properties and invest in some other endeavor that’s an actual profit seeking enterprise. Literally everyone wins.
I am sure in America it would be absurdly unpopular, but it works great.
Honestly this. Even from a business standpoint RTO doesn't make sense. If I was a major shareholder I'd be asking why so many companies insist on frittering away billions on rent unnecessarily.
Because they're currently paying those expensive leases with little to no use. They can't comprehend the idea of just not using the space until the lease is up. And for those that own the buildings, selling it clearly isn't an option either with office prices tanking because society is realizing that much office space is not actually necessary.
I think my parents would genuinely rather be taken out back and old yeller'd than pass on debt like that. They've put a lot of effort into paying off credit card debt and paying off their house, and making sure that their Will is in order when they do pass so that I am not dealing with problems like they have with their parents.
Housing Bubble 2: Return of the Ugly
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