Attention income property owners, Portland along with Seattle and New York City has just scored another first. On September 21st, Portland along with its anarchist sister cities was identified by the Department of Justice (DOJ) as a “jurisdiction where governments are permitting anarchy, violence and destruction in American cities.”
Attorney General William Barr further elaborated that “when state and local leaders impede their own law enforcement officers and agencies from doing their jobs, it endangers innocent citizens who deserve to be protected. (As such) we cannot allow federal tax dollars to be wasted when the safety of the citizenry hangs in the balance.”
Now that the Fed has put its official seal of disapproval on Portland, any fiduciary worth their salt is going to run as far and fast away from investing in it as possible. Talk about an incentive to sell!
I’m sure Ted Wheeler and his minions will wear this dubious distinction on their sleeve as a “red badge of courage.” However, I doubt it will have a salutary effect on property values.
While the jury is still out as to whether or not federal funding can be withdrawn from these cities, it sure sends out a negative message concerning the brand. Being singled out by the DOJ on justice.gov for surpassing 100 consecutive nights of unrest is akin to an internet perp walk. I am hard pressed to come up with a strategy that has more potential for wealth destruction. As the great Bob Dylan said in “The times they are a-changin’ – if your times (and money) worth savin’ you better start swimmin’ or you’ll sink like a stone…”
In light of recent developments, it is hard to overstate the degree of animus directed by the Portland and Seattle city government at the landlord class. The Portland city council has unanimously approved a measure effective immediately requiring landlords who raise rent by any amount to pay tenant relocation costs to move tenants who do not want to pay the rent increase. This comes at a time when 33 percent of renters missed housing payments and failed to make their full housing payments on time, according to Apartment List.
Therefore, landlords are collecting less rent than at any time before, can’t remove those who are delinquent and are unable to raise rents on those who are not. Time to go swimmin’ before your property values sink like a stone.
Learning to swim means coming up to speed regarding DST properties as soon as possible. In our opinion, they are one of the best vehicles currently available to help you navigate dangerous waters and increasingly unsafe harbors.
The variety of property types, geography and divisibility of DST offerings can help you transcend the current progressive government conundrum of policy failure, scapegoating and ever higher taxes. They can invest you with the same freedom of choice that historically has been the purview of institutional property investors. They can emancipate you from the parochial nature of local markets and their benighted constituents.
