VICTOR JOECKS: The conservative case for limiting corporate home ownership
Even Hollywood would have a hard time crafting a scenario as messy and dysfunctional as what has been happening in Carson City. It may end up even more chaotic.
Under state law, the Legislature can call its own special session with two-thirds support in each chamber. Reportedly, leaders are considering doing so to pass legislation restricting corporate home purchases. High home prices are a significant problem and a major reason why young adults are struggling to buy their first home.
This idea has fans on the left and the right. Last session, Nevada Senate Democrats backed a bill to limit how many homes corporate investors could purchase in a year. Before his assassination, Charlie Kirk warned that companies such as BlackRock “are bidding out first-time homebuyers.”
It’s an idea that conservatives should consider — although a special session isn’t an ideal place for nuanced discussions.
The obvious objection is that this goes against free market principles. The government would be picking winners and losers. As someone who’s a big fan of the free market, that’s a concern I take seriously.
There’s something else I take seriously — the threat of socialism.
It’s far from a sure thing that the free market economy continues. In ways big and small, the government is constantly meddling in the marketplace — hello, minimum wage laws and rent control. Now, we conservatives can win the war of ideas all day long. We can point to how socialism has a decades-long track record of making living conditions worse in countries around the world.
Unfortunately, as Zohran Mamdani’s mayoral win in New York City showed, that isn’t enough. Downwardly mobile voters look for someone promising change. And thinking that voters will learn their lesson after getting democracy “good and hard” is wishful thinking. Chicago isn’t electing a conservative mayor anytime soon. It keeps doubling down on radicalism.
Think of it this way. In a couple of years, I will be teaching my beautiful oldest daughter how to drive. I want her to learn to drive. That’s why I’ll be pulling my hair out in the passenger’s seat. Gulp.
But if I see that she is going to get into an accident, I’ll reach over and turn the wheel. That doesn’t mean I’m against my daughter driving. But she will drive more if I can help her avoid totaling the car.
This doesn’t mean a blanket ban on corporate home ownership is the solution. Meddling in the market has downstream effects.
The biggest need is to build more homes. Lawmakers must be certain that any policy they support won’t discourage that. Lawmakers could consider a cooling-off period, making corporate buyers wait until a home has been on the market for 90 days before putting in an offer.
The lack of a perfect solution shouldn’t stop conservatives from addressing this looming problem. If young adults don’t become homeowners — instead of just renters — Mamdani’s smiley-faced brand of socialism is likely to spread.
Victor Joecks’ column appears in the Opinion section each Sunday, Wednesday and Friday. Listen to him discuss his columns each Monday at noon with Kevin Wall on AM 670 KMZQ Right Talk. Contact him at vjoecks@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-4698. Follow @victorjoecks on X.
