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Biden’s next inflation threat: The rent is too damn high


Hedge funds have been buying up many single family dwellings, and are planning on renting them, for whatever the market will bare. First time home owners are being priced out by large sudden cash offers above asking prices. Folks getting loans for mortgages are have a very hard time, and most will end up renting, increasing demand for ever higher rentals.
TAT

Exactly, I must have average around 5 inquires a month over the last 6-7 months wanting to know if I wanted to sell my house. I also seen the price for a ranch style house, 1/2 acre go from around 180,000 to close to 250,000 since the pandemic. A lot of home sellers are asking for 300,000 or more. New housing developments, 2 story, 1/3rd of an acre start at 300,000. The whole housing price thing has really gone crazy. it seems sub-divisions are going up by the thousands on good farmland.

Greger, I tied it to gas since it is easily visible and that is the complaint, I hear the most. It’s also right there as the number one issue, rising prices. I haven’t heard or seen any complaints on rent, but I live out in the country where people buy and don't rent.

Here are the top issues for independents, you can read the article for all adults nationwide, republicans and democrats.

INDEPENDENTS TOP ISSUES: #1 ECONOMY FOLLOWED BY #2 CORONAVIRUS
Americans that identified as independent/other stated the issues that mattered most in deciding how they will vote in the United States mid-term elections in 2022 were the economy (27%) and coronavirus (17%). Other issues in order of importance included healthcare (12%), climate change (10%), national security (9%), immigration (7%), and racial/gender equality (6%). Five percent or fewer independent/other respondents listed education, foreign policy, and supreme court as top issues.

https://www.prnewswire.com/news-rel...tein-center-national-poll-301378814.html

Now CNN listed the top issue for independents as 1 economy 38%, COVID 18%, immigration 13%, climate change 11%, national security 11%, racial justice 6% education 2%, something else 3%, you can also scroll down to see how all adults, republicans and democrats ranked these things.

http://cdn.cnn.com/cnn/2021/images/11/08/rel7a.-.politics.pdf

I emphasized independents as the swing voters who go back and forth between parties, that is where most if not all lie.

So did I until I sold my 3/2 ranch on 5 acres for nearly $400K.

But I've kept track of rising home values, rising rents, the rising cost of medical care and dental care, the rising cost of education, and the debt related to it. And I've watched wages stagnate and the increasing share of wealth among the billionaire class

The price of groceries has been slowly creeping up for decades. There is a health crisis among lower-income Americans because healthy and nutritious food is simply not affordable. But these same folks also can't afford healthcare, nor to send their kids to college so they might rise above poverty.

And as the years fly by, more and more people join their ranks, and every year it gets harder and harder to get by.

Marxist Theory says that somewhere along about here, we will reach a breaking point. Workers will revolt! They will walk off their jobs, find other ways to survive, and change society to suit themselves rather than an elite "ruling class".

Unfortunately for Marxist Theory...Democrats are recognized as the elite ruling class by a majority of the working class who vote.

And so the torches and the pitchforks battle it out in the streets and never manage to wind their way to the castle...

And the real elite ruling class be like...

Greger, I’m not sure I shared this with you or not. But just in case. I also been following the number as it seems the working class is becoming more Republican these days than Democratic. I won’t get into the reasons, but that is the trend.

Twilight of the Blue-Collar Democrat
In New Jersey and Pennsylvania, last week’s election marked the end of a crucial party constituency.

https://www.city-journal.org/twilight-of-the-blue-collar-democrat

Not only that, union household are now falling for the Democrats. Union households averaged 65% from FDR through 2008 voting Democratic in presidential elections. Then in 2012 Obama received 58%, 2016 Clinton received 51% and Biden 2020 upped the union household vote back up to 54%. Which was still 10 points below average from FDR to Obama. I have no way of proving, no numbers, but I’m wondering if the drop in union households is mainly in the private sector while the public sector unions remain solid Democratic. At times my mind drifts to these tangents for no known reason.

Here's something you can scroll through if you have a mind to. Questions 12-20

https://docs.cdn.yougov.com/87gqotkd1s/econTabReport.pdf

I firmly believe that the Democrats are only talking with each other. I also believe that they think that everybody agrees with them because they are so right. What they really should be doing is getting some basic messages that everybody can agree on and make sense as well as getting the passed infrastructure legislation up and running as soon as possible. Forget the human infrastructure until they win the next election. If they somehow actually get the human infrastructure passed it will be the Republican tool that will assure their failure in the next election.

My reasoning is that its unlikely that there is actually time to pass and get the human infrastructure up and running and the passed infrastructure legislation will also suffer, to a less degree, the same problem. This will leave the Dems the job of trying to explain what they are doing. So far they have not been able to do that even a little bit. Instead its pretty much blah, blah, blah, blah about what many consider pie in the sky.

The Dems just can't seem to understand the value of their message so they don't bother and, instead it remains blah, blah, blah while prices continue to rise and the republicans continue to attack them every hour of every day and the Dems just don't seem to be able to attack or even communicate!

In other words the Dems have now had a year to do something. They did a great thing with the first legislation but that was a year ago and, since then, its just been blah, blah, blah with nothing much to show for it.

The strange thing is that, on reflection, Biden has really done pretty good. The problem is that nobody knows it because the Republicans have figured out how to communicate lies even better than Democrats can communicate the truth. They tend to spend more time making promises than pointing out what they have actually done and that's a shame. My own thought is that the Dems need to hire a really good advertising agency to train them in how to do their jobs because, obviously, they don't get it.

I think you nailed it here, but the solution isn't better messaging by the Dems, for the reason you stated - the Reeps are more successful at communicating lies because lies are easier to spread, for the simple reasons that there's endless versions, they require no critical thinking or intelligence to believe, they they create a chaotic world where nobody knows their asss from a hole in the ground. That said, a bit more teamwork and coherent messaging by the Dems couldn't hurt.

I don't think there is a solution for the egregious lying unless honesty, ethics, and consideration for others can become mainstream.

While I agree with most of what you said jgw, I don’t think you can blame it on Republican attacks. Inflation, the rise in prices, the empty shelves are there for all to see. I suppose the partisans can fight over who’s to blame, but these swing voters, the one’s who are willing to vote for either party's candidates, don’t give a darn about who's to blame. Independents, swing voters don’t pay much if any attention to the in-fighting and the rhetoric coming out of D.C. But they do pay attention to how much gas costs, how much food prices have risen, how much their natural gas bill will be this winter. So, what are the Democrats doing or talking about while all of this is going on? The BBB infighting, the 1-6 hearings, more Trump, then how glorious things will be for one and all once the BBB gets passed. Very little words and no action from them on rising prices etc.

Election wise, strategy wise, are the democrats living in their own little fantasy world? I don’t understand it. What’s the number one problem in most folks’ mind, the economy, inflation, rising prices. Everything else is secondary or further down the line, especially with these swing voters who are facing very thinning wallets. I don’t think even the best PR firm would help the Democrats until they act on inflation, rising prices etc. Start showing some interest at least.

A lot of folks think I’m crazy when I say the midterms will be determine by the price of a gallon of gas. Call it a metaphor for what most people are now saying is this nation’s number one and at the moment, perhaps its only important problem. At least to these swing voters who decide elections.

That demonstrates the problem with independents who vote without distinguishing between cause and effect!
No wonder they have so much trouble deciding which party to support.

Independents are a growing faction of this nation’s electorate. From 30% in 2006 up to 40% today as the two major parties shrink. Most are disgusted with both major parties for various reasons. Gallup as of 19 Oct 2021 lists party affiliation as 29% Republican, 29% Democrat, 44% independent. As Greger calls them coach potatoes, these coach potatoes are now the ones who decide elections.

Independents, swing voters aren’t political junkies, they pay little to no attention to the daily grind of politics going on in D.C. They’re too busy leading their own lives, taking care of family, rooting for their favorite sports team and watching their favorite TV shows. Politics usually don’t interest them much until an election nears. That is unless something comes along which affects their lives. Inflation is that something. If everything is going fine, smooth, they’re happy and will vote for the party in power. When things aren’t smooth, they’re having a hard time, they’ll vote for the party out of power hoping the change will fix things or at least help.

These swing voters aren’t partisans, they’re non-affiliated and in a way have no skin in the political game between the two major parties. They don’t decide the candidates or a political party’s agenda. They simply base their vote on how their own life is going, for better or for worse. Right now, today, with prices rising, empty shelves appearing in some stores, their wallet becoming thin, they’re worried about making ends meet. Worried that they may not be able to afford gas in the future or put food on the table. Only 21% of independents, these coach potatoes, swing voters think the country is headed in the right direction, 64% say it’s headed in the wrong direction. Not good news for the Democrats.

It's not just independents who are unhappy with Biden and company, it’s the whole nation. On the economy, all adults, Biden handling of it, 37% approval, 55% disapprove.

https://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/other/president_biden_job_approval_economy-7321.html

Biden’s overall job performance, all adults, 42% approve, 53% disapprove.

https://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/other/president-biden-job-approval-7320.html

I’ll just leave you with this, partisans regardless of the stripe make piss poor political strategists. Partisans always seem to think the whole nation thinks as they do when that isn’t so. They also don’t understand how swing voters think or the reason they vote the way they do. I think jgw has hit the nail on the head. Perhaps the Democrats need to realize there’s 71% of the population out there that don’t think the same as they do. Right, wrong or indifferent. If Gallup is right, there’s 44% of the population out there disgusted with both major parties. So, unless something changes between now and next November, I’d say a majority of the 44% will be voting GOP because their lives have gotten worse instead of better with total Democratic Party Control of government. The Republicans, or the party out of power doesn’t have to do a darn thing, say anything, come up with any plan, all they need to be is the alternative to what is. This is how elections works for swing voters.

As far as I can tell the Dems are simply not revealing what, exactly, that are either trying to do or doing. They all seem to want to talk about something else and there is really no common thread to what they are saying.

Drives me nuts, especially when the Republicans are so very good at putting their own out with one voice.

The Dems REALLY need help at this but don't seem to want it and ignore more of which has been suggested. They just want to go their own way, I guess. That seems to be a LOT more of interest to them than winning anything.