LETTER: Seniors struggling with surging rents

I feel the pain for the seniors in your Jan. 16 story about surging rent increases. However, not all landlords are venal and greedy. Here is my story:

During the eviction moratorium, I lost $31,000 in rent. I have sued the tenants, won judgements and gotten a massive $413.

I care about my tenants and replace things when needed. Last year I had to replace two stoves, two hot water heaters, one roof, one AC unit and two sprinkler systems (they were 20 years old).

Yes, property values have skyrocketed. But that means higher taxes and insurance rates. The insurance on one property went up $518 dollars. I have no idea what my new Clark County property taxes will be.

According to Apartmentlist.com, year-over-year rent growth in Las Vegas currently stands at 26.4 percent compared to 5.1 percent at this time last year. This is the seventeenth-fastest increase among the nation’s 100 largest cities. Rents in Las Vegas are up by 32.8 percent since the start of the pandemic in March 2020.

Complaining about the property owners will not solve the problem. The only solution I see is to get our state, city and county governments (because the federal government is hopeless) to provide tax benefits that will make affordable housing options attractive to landlords. Because right now this landlord is struggling like the tenants in your story. And I am a senior, too.