On Wordle #407...

Feeling lucky today...

Wordle 407 3/6

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On Wordle #406...

Not a bad game...

Wordle 406 5/6

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On Wordle #405...

An alright game...

Wordle 405 5/6

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On Wordle #404...

It's only logical...

Wordle 404 6/6

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On Wordle #403...

A close shave...

Wordle 403 6/6

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On Wordle #402...

That was easy...

Wordle 402 3/6

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On Wordle #401...

Don't you just hate it, on a day like this?!?

Wordle 401 6/6

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On Wordle #400...

T'is the day of many possibilities...

Wordle 400 6/6

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On Wordle #399...

Need some sleuthing...

Wordle 399 5/6

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On Wordle #398...

This was fun...

Wordle 398 4/6

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On Wordle #397...

Almost forgot to play the game today (due to power outage in my area)...

Wordle 397 4/6

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On Wordle #396...

A bit of luck...

Wordle 396 3/6

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On Wordle #395...

Is Wordle's vocabulary library shrinking or something?

Wordle 395 4/6

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On Wordle #394...

This is fun...

Wordle 394 6/6

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On Wordle #393...

All in a day's work...

Wordle 393 5/6

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On Wordle #392...

An easy day...

Wordle 392 4/6

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On Wordle #391...

Another ok day...

Wordle 391 4/6

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On Wordle #390...

A decent game...

Wordle 390 5/6

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On Wordle #389...

Almost forgot my nighttime ritual...

Wordle 389 4/6

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On Wordle #388...

A day of many possibilities...

Wordle 388 6/6

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On Wordle #387...

Mental block...

Wordle 387 4/6

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On Wordle #386...

Another easy day...

Wordle 386 4/6

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On Wordle #385...

This was almost too easy...

Wordle 385 4/6

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On Wordle #384...

Brain fog...

Wordle 384 5/6

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On Wordle #383...

It's fun, but cutting close, again...

Wordle 383 6/6

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On Wordle #382...

Cutting close...

Wordle 382 6/6

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On Wordle #381...

Quick work...

Wordle 381 4/6

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On Wordle #380...

Almost forgot to play the game before bedtime...

Wordle 380 5/6

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On Wordle #379...

Not a bad game...

Wordle 379 5/6

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On Wordle #378...

Short work...

Wordle 378 4/6

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On gentrification, discrimination, and other thoughts...

In the past few years, Progressives are making inroads to bring issues like gentrification, racism, diversity, climate change and environmental concerns, to mainstream public discourse. It's decidedly a good thing to at least raise awareness of the issues. Without acknowledgement of the issues, no change would be forthcoming.

Some issues bubbled up organically. In the case of racism, in particular, police brutality and racial profiling have made it easier for everyone to rally to the cause. Unfortunately people like George Floyd had to die to such graphic ways as to arouse public outage over him, and so many other colored folks like him. Some things have to change. Public protests ensue.  Lots of organizations got created as a result. It's inevitable - almost expected - to have bad apples and fractures among various groups in terms of directions of the movement, the funding for these social justice causes, and more importantly, who control the funding. At the end of the day, it's all about power, control, and money, no matter the skin color(s) involved.

For today, let me jog down some thoughts on gentrification.

Gentrification has had such bad rap in recent years, it's become synonymous to racism and inequality. There are many causes, and history of US is steep, not to mention the fact that gentrification is happening around the world, and US is hardly alone. So, one has to ask, is gentrification really just a product of racism?

There is no doubt that gentrification has strong racist overtone, but racism is hardly the only factor. Elsewhere in the world, in a highly homogeneous society like Hong Kong, gentrification is also happening in rapid pace for years and years. People generally welcome it. Why? Because everyone loves a nicer-looking and safer environment that also comes with amenities. Who wouldn't, really? 

There is always a price to pay for having nicer things, and gentrification is hardly alone. (Afterall, someone has to pay for it, and money doesn't grow on trees. Even if you say, government should underwrite, that's simply another way of saying, taxpayers are paying for it.) Older neighborhoods will be razed and transformed. Displaced residents will have to move elsewhere. As the saying goes, everyone can be bought, with a right price. If the compensation is reasonable, most people would take the money and run, then go elsewhere cheaper to start over. 

There is of course a catch. Compensation is really more for property owners, rather than renters. As a matter of course, if you're just renting, landlords can choose not to renew lease (so that s/he can sell out or even move in themselves), or raise the rent to such level that renters will have no choice but to leave. If you're a renter, that's the Sword of Damocles hanging over your head, always. Bitching and moaning about it, isn't going to change that fact. In a place like Hong Kong, people are always pragmatic about it. In the bygone era, Hong Kong government danced the fine line between building/maintaining just enough public housing projects, without overwhelming the private property market (which has become one of main ways for citizenry to build generational wealth). 

Those local chinese in Hong Kong inherently understand and accept this reality. That's why everyone wants to buy into the property market, at least to have some ways to ensure a roof above one's head.

And then, of course when some developers want to buy you out, paying you handsomely to vacate so that they can gentrify an old neighborhood, why the heck not? Just take the goddamn money, and run. (In a homogeneous society, no one gets too sentimental about any history or culture in any particular neighborhood, that much is a given.)

US has far more historic bagging. At the dawn of this new country, European migrants displaced (and often slaughtered) indigenous Indians-Americans.  Once these European migrants had their foothold on the land, they did the same thing in Africa, not necessarily for their land but for capturing bodies as slaves that were treated as commodities, bought and sold and used for any purpose as the slave-masters pleased. Lots of history books and scholars expounded on these, so I won't have to repeat these details. 

(The question is really...Do people still read history books these days? Would GOP allow schools to teach historic evens accurately, or simply insist on canceling the inconvenient truth like Critical Race Theory (CRT) just to keep children ignorant of dark historic events? Food for thoughts...and maybe blog topics for another day.)

Long story short, you have a history, and governments on all levels, and the whole system and infrastructure stacked up against you and your kins, that occurred over a few centuries, how do you overcome that? 

Fact of the matter is, people don't forget, and mistrust to government and the systems as a whole is steep. For this, I totally understand. One could say, an outsider like me who is not black, would never understand the magnitude. I do agree with that assertion, for the most part. 

At some point though, one has to move on, for pete's sake, and for the sake of future generations. One also has to acknowledge the fact that US today is no longer the US from the 18th and 19th century. Slavery has been abolished (though much racism remains), discriminatory practices (eg. redlining) are banned outright. At some point, one has to learn to stand on one's own feet. After some 157 years (when slavery was abolished in US in 1865), one has to assume some agency, rather than keeps going back to history and blame it on some injustice happened a century and a half ago. 

There is a reason why newer migrants in US do not always take it as kindly on the primarily black-and-brown populace who seems to constantly talking up the prospect of discrimination and injustice. Remember the Chinese Exclusion Act (1882)? Asians like Chinese and Japanese were dealt with discrimination just as brutally. Remember the garden variety of "No Dogs And Chinese [or Japanese, or Filipinos, etc] Allowed" signage in the bygone era? Those blatant, outright discrimination was no less offensive than what Rosa Parks had suffered through and championed against.

In a way, Black civil rights activists like Rosa Parks and MLK in the past generations had fought for equality for, and suppression against, all minorities. They also shine bright light around the world, on discriminations big and small. No one should ever forget that. 

One would hope, that more than a century or two later now, the Black communities would reap benefits from the fights from decades ago. Yet, in the year of 2022, we are still in the thrall of progressive fights over seemingly the same themes (on racism, discrimination, equality, diversity, and more). What gives?!?

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I meant to write about thoughts on gentrification, not necessarily the history of civil rights and discrimination. But in US, it's hard to talk about one, without bringing up remnants of the other.

There should be no dispute that the end results of gentrification are not a bad thing. Nice landscape, better amenities, safer neighborhoods, rising property prices, more government revenue (that in turns can afford to provide better public service and amenities still). It's supposed to be a win-win. What is not to love?

For property owners, it's decidedly a win. But if you're a renter, you'll almost lose out (if you can't afford the rising rent anymore, assuming your station hasn't improved in tandem with the gentrified neighborhood). 

Progressives like to shape the narrative in such a way that black-and-brown communities are all renters, so they can't benefit from gentrification. That's misnomer #1.

Progressives also like to insist that black-and-brown communities don't want gentrification (or rather, all the good things that it brings about), and that they would rather have their derelict neighborhoods in decrepit buildings and unsafe neighborhoods with violent crimes. That's misnomer #2.  

Therein lies the chicken-and-egg problem. The erstwhile neighborhoods were cheap (read: affordable) for anyone to buy in and own properties. Buying properties is not casino gambling, it's a long term investment in a neighborhood that you believe in. Conundrum #1: Do black-and-brown minorities take the time to buy the properties, then spent the time to improve on it, watch the neighborhoods improve and value improve? They should've. If not, why not? 

As noted earlier, if you're a renter, you'll never reap the benefits of rising property prices, you'll only pay the price for when property prices and rent both go up. For those who choose to be a renter (that comes with low rent and flexibility), they can't have it both ways. They can't pay the low price when it's convenient to them, then bitch about rising rent when others decide to do something about it (and dust up the neighborhood to make it better...read: gentrified). It's more like sour grapes when owner reaps the capital gain while conveniently ignoring the fact that owner has been scraping by for years to pay the mortgage.

To find the strawman that makes their narrative more palatable, Progressives would have it all believe that landlords are all just greedy corporate suits, conveniently ignoring all the moms-and-pops small-time owners. That's misnomer #3.

Progressives never mention about the black-and-brown middle-class because that's an inconvenient truth to their narrative.  In reality, even Bookings Institute (as liberal a think tank as it is) asserts that black middle class has been gaining grounds, and brown middle class is even more pronounced:

But Progressives could never bring themselves to admit to the rising fortune of the black-and-brown middle class since it undercuts their narrative that these groups always need their help (and lack their own agency). That's misnomer #4.

As a causal observer, Progressives can get on my nerve. While I don't dispute their noble goals, the fact that they have shifted the public discourse to vilify gentrification and all landlords, just so that they have some "valid" justification to fight for, no matter how much agency the disadvantaged groups might have, it speaks volume about their superiority mentality.

Bottomline is, if you want to improve your station, you can't always shift the blame on something else when things don't turn out in your favor. If local communities don't band together to improve on the neighborhoods, then you don't really have much ground to stand on when someone else decides to do something about it (and they reap the gains as a result).

Therein lies Conundrum #2: Decades after federal mandate of school integration, the core tenet remains the same, which is that black-and-brown families want whatever white families have. Yes, that's a very simplistic generalization, but that's really where the issue is. For those white folks who can afford it, they laud the noble goals (because they mostly can afford to put their kids in private schools, or in a neighborhood that aren't predominantly blacks, for example), these are the Progressives who are telling everyone else that they should "do as I say, not as I do." They are mandating others to do the heavy-lifting and integrate the schools. These are precisely the kind of NIMBY crowds who yell the loudest about how progressive they are, but tell the government to build affordable housing projects somewhere else, lest it'll impact their property value. I know this type of people well because I live amongst most of these hypocrites in my neighborhood. And to the disadvantaged crowds who are expecting people to share their bowl of food with a smiling face, they are condemning anyone who refuse to comply.

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I'm a small-time landlord. (It's my hobby on the side.) I thus have a thing or two to say on this subject.

It takes years to reap gains from a property. One might look at the capital gains in property market in the past few years with green envy, but historically speaking, as much as the nominal gains of 900% from 1945 sounding impressive, annualized gain (taking into account inflation) is really less than 1%. Assuming another 1% property value for taxes and maintenance, the gain is really....zero.

But, I like the fact I own the land, and I believe in the neighborhoods (that I mentioned earlier), and I want to build a legacy that my children and their children can own, that they would always have a place they can truly call home, rather than being a perennial renter.

I'm thus partial to gentrification. Of course I welcome gentrification. After paying mortgages for years, of course I want the neighborhoods to change for the better. Anyone who tells you otherwise would be lying through their teeth.

By the way, I spent 70%+ of my disposable income to pay mortgages too. No one would shed a tear for me, just by looking at my AGI (which is high), and I don't expect any sympathy or handouts. I do all these by choice, I watch my expenses, I clip coupons, I don't eat out and travel much anymore these days. I'll bet, most of my renters live a larger life than I am. I thus don't have sympathy to those who live large, and then turn around to bitch about their party punch bowl being snatched away. Again, you can't have it both ways.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

On the subject of discrimination, one past experience of mine still stays with me.

Some years ago, I rented an apartment to a family who wants to move into the neighborhood of my two-family home. It's a nice neighborhood with very decent public school and convenient public transport. I never over-charge any renters, which is usually slightly below market rate. 

Here's the profile of this renter: It's a large family (a young couple with four young kids...and growing), surviving on income from the husband alone who worked two low-income jobs. The apartment has three bedrooms and a nicely maintained yard. I provided common washer/dryer for all tenants to use.

Here's what happens next: The renter requested his own washer/dryer due to "religious belief" (he doesn't want his wife's linen to be washed/dried in the same machine as the other tenant). At the same time, common utility and water bills had gone up three times (which I, as landlord, have to pay). The other tenant complained about children's noise and constant stream of visitors. Neighbors complained to me about the children's noise and toys slewed on sidewalks and roads (with pictures to show for it). 

Understanding that the husband was already stretched tight on his income, it's almost certain that he wouldn't be able to afford any rent increase (to at least offset the drastic rise in water usage and billing, not to mention prevalent market rent).

When the other tenant gave notice to move out, this renter offered to rent the other apartment too, so that his extended families can move in. God only knows how many adults and children would reside in my two-family property.

In the end, I decided not to renew the lease. He couldn't afford the other apartment anyhow since his extended family couldn't afford the market rent at the time. 

That neighborhood has gentrified substantially since then, it's conceivable that this renter could never afford it anymore. If he had stayed on, he would have struggled to pay the rent (even if I don't raise the rent), I have no doubt of that.

When I look at on episode like this, it prompts for introspection:

• As a landlord, I'm sure Progressives these days would pigeonhole me as a bad guy, some coldhearted, greedy landlord who don't have a care for renters, or a slumlord who don't take care of the property, or someone who only look at the dollar-sign and nothing else. But I'm not any of those.
• I do have concerns for my renters, I never charge full market-rate rent, I take very good care of the property, and I readily work with my renters to ensure any issues are addressed promptly. 
• As a landlord, I just want a renter who is financially stable, pays rent on time, takes good care of the apartment, and doesn't make too much fuss or demands. Is it that much to ask for? Progressives would have us believe that these basic landlord requirements are all labeled discriminatory. In reality, I can't care less if a renter is gay or straight, or whatever religion they practice, all those are private matters, as it should be.
• I have a mortgage to pay, together with a truck load of bills  (property taxes, insurance policy, water bills, utility bills, gas bills, maintenance & repairs, etc). Renters are shielded from the rapidly rising costs of all these. Does anyone have concerns for my well-being (that I pay more than 70% of my monthly disposable income on mortgage and utilities)? I can itemize the cash inflow/outflow on any given month to whoever Progressives care to look, but do they really care about small-time landlords like me?
• And if Progressives don't care or listen to me, why should I extend that courtesy to their concerns? It has to be a two-way street to me, yet I feel like Progressives care more about name-calling, and pigeonholing whoever that dares to speak of any concerns other than what's on their agenda. 
• If my renters can't pay up or on time, that falls on me to backstop the mortgage obligations. Where is the fairness in that? For anyone who cares to look, they should realize that the bank owns the property unless and until the mortgage is paid off...in, what, 30 years' time. Are the Progressives going to help me if I default on my mortgage because renters are deadbeats?
• More importantly, is it discrimination or simply economic reality, for want of a renter who has a better job with the financial wherewithal to pay the rent, and who don't use 3x the water, or demand to have their own private washer/dryer, or with no complaints from neighbors? 
• I have no doubt that Progressives would call me horrible names in that episode. In all honesty, I don't really care much about someone's skin colors or religion or what they do in their private life. But if their actions impinge on me funding their lifestyle, that's a different story.
• And all these happen even before any gentrification sets in. No doubt Progressives would want to lump everything in one gigantic bucket, and call it a racist/diversity issue, then blame it on gentrification. But that's way way way too simplistic to even capture the essence and truth. Economic reality is a bitch. Are Progressives brave enough to look at that straight-on?

Everyone has a right to pursue their own happiness, that's a given. And everyone should have a fair go. 

I did try to give that low-income renter a chance, but it didn't work out. And I'm not rich enough to continue funding this family. (If I were that rich and that charitable, I would have done it with a charitable foundation.)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Gentrification is a good thing for those who own. If you don't want to miss out, if you believe in the long-term prospect of a neighborhood, scrap up every penny to buy your piece of land/property, and stop bitching and moaning about it. There's no magic to it, and no government can or should change that, no matter where you are.

And, please, stop the green envy for someone else who bought a place 40 years at dirt cheap price, then sell it for millions. If you're not willing to invest in a property and neighborhood for 40 years, and contribute to it until it becomes desirable, then you really have no right bemoaning why someone is reaping the gains and you're not. 

It's hard to just say, you need to play the system to your advantage. Just bitching about century-old history is not going to improve your station, one iota. While working on systemic change, you have to multi-task to ensure that you can improve your situation anyway you can. If that means buying into a neighborhood, then do it!!!

As much as I laud the goals of Progressives, the high-handed way to go about it decidedly rubs me the wrong way.

On Wordle #377...

Not a bad day today...

Wordle 377 4/6

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