Essay
Obviously, housing is expensive. Inflation and a poor real estate market have left the options for would-be homeowners few and far between. A cheaper short term solution to this, is renting and specifically, apartments. But a common grievance with apartments and renting is the landlord. Now of course there are good landlords but there are also bad ones as well. Imagine, you're a single mother of two and a pipe in your apartment just burst. You call your landlord and they come down, inspect the pipe, say they'll fix it soon, and never do. You would think that they would be liable for any damages to your personal things, except they're not actually your landlord. They just work for your landlord, who is not in fact an actual person, but an LLC. By renting an apartment run by an LLC, you have unknowingly given up much of your ability to hold your landlord accountable for any injuries, monetary or otherwise, that they may have caused you. Now, not only is your pipe not fixed, you are limited in your options for reimbursement and have to go through a lengthy legal process to get said reimbursement. This is why a statewide landlord database is necessary in Minnesota. If implemented, renters can make more informed decisions on the apartments they are renting before they enter into a predatory business practice. In addition, greater transparency on such things as rent cost, added fees, landlords and LLC information, and previous renter history will be provided by this bill.