More On Our Monthy Meeting Topics (Sturbridge Meetings)

“The landlord has been the most unpopular figure in all history.  This is the one guy on whom all classes, races, and creeds unite in a common prejudice.  I guess this goes way back to the feudal days and before, when the ‘landlord’ became a fixture in the minds of the people as ‘the enemy.’  It still persists.  He is the one man in our society who does not win sympathy under any circumstances.  If the roof caves in and the tenants are sitting in the debris, they will laugh like hell.  They will endure any hardship as long as it means trouble for the landlord.”

This was written by Harry Golden (1902 – 1981) in 1958.  It appears in his book of essays “Only In America”.  He was a newspaper publisher and a satirical writer of current events.

Apologies must be offered to the women in our association.  When Mr. Golden wrote this, the vast majority of landlords were men.  His exclusive use of the male gender reflects this and the cultural norms of the mid-1950’s.

Do you think his thoughts hold true today?

Most tenants still regard the landlord as a money grubbing tightwad out to screw them.  And, for the most part, housing courts are fairly inhospitable toward landlords.  Add to this the complex, and sometimes contradictory, set of landlord / tenant laws in The Commonwealth that form a legal minefield in which landlords must carefully navigate.  All combined, we small time landlords are in a risky business.

The purpose of our ongoing set of meeting topics is to provide a working background on the types of problems we can expect – and how to deal with those problems - when searching for, leasing to, and evicting tenants as a normal course of business.  The knowledge we gain from each other will not guarantee success, but it can reduce risks and increase the chance of a prosperous business.  Lack of knowledge, on the other hand, is a sure guarantee for encountering the misfortunes of risk.  Please join us and be part of the discussion.