What is a Slumlord?

The Conway Daily Sun was joking but there is,
 by definition, a 'Slum Lord' in Fryeburg.

Wikipedia defines “Slumlord” as

“a derogatory term for landlords, generally absentee landlords, who attempt to maximize profit by minimizing spending on property maintenance, often in deteriorating neighborhoods.”

Using this definition – it would seem that the majority of landlords could be defined as a slumlord. The main qualification in this definition is “maximizing profit by minimizing spending.” I would argue that if you are a landlord and not attempting to minimize your spending on property maintenance then you are spending significantly more than needed.

No landlord wants to spend a lot on maintenance. Maintenance is one of the largest expenses a landlord might face and spending money unnecessarily is like throwing money out the window. That’s why we get multiple bids, often do maintenance work ourselves, and use cheaper options when possible. Why spend twenty when ten will do perfectly fine?  Why replace when something can be repaired?

I’m not suggesting a landlord should refuse a property maintenance issue – but “minimizing” expenses is key in running any business – real estate or other.

Exploiting The Poor

I think the key concept that is missing from this definition is “exploitation.”

The truer definition of slumlord, I believe, is

“a derogatory term for landlords, generally absentee landlords, who attempt to exploit tenants and maximize profits by refusing to spend on property maintenance, often in deteriorating neighborhoods.”

To me, a slumlord is one who takes advantage of a tenant’s situation in life to maximize their profits. A tenant who cannot afford a more expensive place often has no other option but to put up refused maintenance and deteriorating property condition. Sure, they could move somewhere else. Moving, however, is not free. It takes time, money, and acceptance into a new place that might not be any better.

Sure, we could talk about why the poor are poor and who’s responsibility it is to help them. I don’t want to go there though. In fact, I want to steer clear of the politics and rhetoric and focus on something not often talked about in business: the heart.

A slumlord is a condition of the heart.

Slumlord Millionaire?

It’s not about what a property looks like – it’s about what your personality looks like. Do you exploit the poor because they have no other options (or don’t feel they have other options?) Do you refuse needed maintenance because the tenant won’t leave? Do you ignore your tenants important requests simply because you don’t want to spend money? Then you might be a slumlord.

Again, I don’t think it’s mandatory that landlords pay for high-end repairs whenever a tenant wants one. However, providing and maintaining basic services with your property – even if it costs money – is not only good for overall business but also simply the right thing to do.

As the Biblical adage states, “What good is it to gain the whole world but lose your soul?”