If you watch closely, a new theme is emerging among the corporate media: the publication of stories related to the economy which describe something that is worse now than four years ago due to Bidenomics, without ever mentioning President Biden or Bidenomics. The most recent example comes via NBC News in a report on the current advantages of renting versus home ownership.
Watch the report in its entirety, as aired on NBC Nightly News on Monday, April 29th, 2024 (click “expand”):
LESTER HOLT: It's an age-old question, and so many people are asking it in this tight housing market. Should you rent or buy a home? CNBC's Diana Olick now with a new report just out about that, and it may surprise you.
DIANA OLICK: Claire Murray has been renting for almost a decade. The 30-year-old pharmaceutical researcher says she can afford to buy a home but isn't sure it's the right investment for her.
CLAIRE MURRAY: I have seen the economy change. I have seen the house market really balloon up in a way that kind of scares me from buying a home right now.
OLICK: Home ownership has become so expensive that renting a home is now cheaper than buying one in all 50 of the largest U.S. cities, according to a new report from Bankrate.
ALEX GAILEY: Buying a home is pretty expensive due to high mortgage rates, high home prices, and there's also a lot of competition in the market because there is low inventory.
OLICK: The monthly mortgage payment for a median priced home, which is around $412,000, was $2,703 as of February of this year. That includes property taxes and insurance. Compare that to the national monthly rent of $1,979, which includes renter's insurance. That's a 37% gap between the two. In some cities that gap is even wider including San Francisco, Seattle, Salt Lake City, Austin, Denver and Dallas. Cities with the smallest gaps, though still more expensive to own, include Detroit, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, Cleveland, St. Louis and Tampa. It's all giving today's renters a different take on the so-called dream of home ownership.
MURRAY: I think renting can also be a good financial decision. And I don't know if society's always viewed it that way.
OLICK: While the math shows renting is cheaper, it doesn't factor home appreciation into the equation. Historically, home prices have gone up over time, making home ownership one of the best ways to build wealth. Lester.
HOLT: Diana Olick. Thank you.
The most recent instance of such stellar Biden-protective reporting came a little over a week ago, when CBS Weekend News ran a story on the high costs of auto ownership: from vehicle prices to the cost of even basic car insurance. This report went the entirety of its time without ever mentioning Biden or Bidenomics, as if the inflation that caused car (and insurance) prices to skyrocket just happened organically.
We now see the same dynamics at play in this report that sells being a renter, and not actually a homeowner, as a net positive.
Why is being a renter suddenly more advantageous than home ownership, which at one time was considered fundamental to individual attainment of the American Dream? Due to the high cost of home ownership, to wit: high prices and high costs of insurance. And what happened to make home prices skyrocket? Why did insurance get so expensive? We never hear those answers to problems that are presented to the viewer as calamities disembodied from the current environment.
There is no mention of the effects of inflation on the costs of home ownership, on the increase in construction and compliance costs, or on today’s high mortgage rates. How much of the tightness in the inventory market is caused by homeowners hanging on to their low rates from nearly a decade ago? We aren’t told.
“Biden” and “Bidenomics” emerge unscathed from this report. Once again, the media go into "Protect the Precious" mode in order shield President Biden from any accountability over his performance on matters pertaining to the economy. to The title “Regime Media” is well-earned.
