That's exactly that, especially with the subletting boom, most RE has become a source of income, but are few of the places where isn't regulated and always become harder to manage.

supratic

When I sit down and think about it more, it's probably because most places that get rented have been owned by the landlord for a decade or more. So they're paying 2010 mortgage prices monthly, rather than what today's number is.

So say they got a house in 2010 they're paying $1k/mo for, and are renting it out today, they're able to set their rent according to that price. The current market rate for a new house could be $3k/mo, but it doesn't really matter 

m00ninite

charts_and_numbers

Demystification: The Monthly Cost of Buying vs. Renting a House in America

Well it's cheaper but if you look at what you have after X decades, when renting you're basically throwing money out of the window, when instead for buying at least you have an asset you can sell. That's maybe why it's more expensive, just a guess.
