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There's a very simple solution to this problem:

* any and every landlord immediately pays taxes based on the asking rent, no matter what rent it is.

If a landlord is asking $2500/mo for something, the government immediately values the property based on whatever the formula is based off the asking rent, even if the landlord cannot fill the space.

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> any and every landlord immediately pays taxes based on the asking rent, no matter what rent it is.

To work to decrease or cap rents this would have to be a dramatically increasing progressive tax. It would have to be a complicated progressive tax to work with both small, less desirable residences and mansions.

No, because if they happened to own a small place they won't be able to rent it for a wishing price as there's a price pressure from above thus anyone with a smaller place will pay smaller taxes.

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