RT Perry E. Metzger: In the 1960s through 1970s, huge numbers of buildings in New York City were abandoned, because their owners could not make enough...
During the 1960s-1970s, many NYC landlords abandoned buildings because rent controls made them unprofitable, they couldn't evict tenants, and no buyers existed. Some resorted to arson as the only legal way to break leases, leaving vacant lots. Large areas of the city became devastated, resembling a warzone.
Background
- This is a quote-tweet from Naval Ravikant (Silicon Valley investor and co-founder of AngelList) reposting a historical observation by Perry E. Metzger, a technologist and writer.
- The thread draws an analogy between NYC's 1960s-70s rent-control crisis and current debates about rent regulation. The claim: when rent controls make landlording unprofitable while costs rise, owners eventually abandon or destroy buildings rather than continue bleeding money—leading to urban decay rather than affordable housing.
- In the original tweet, Spencer Pratt argues that modern rent "freezes" are intentional policies to make private housing unviable so government can take over properties cheaply.
- The photo shows a contemporary apartment building with signs protesting rent freezes and poor living conditions.
- Background: NYC experienced severe disinvestment and abandonment in the 1970s, losing hundreds of thousands of housing units. Many burned in suspected arson-for-insurance fires. This period is frequently cited in debates over whether rent control ultimately destroys housing supply.