This is intended. It drives retirees out of their houses* and into efficient group homes, thus freeing new rental properties to the market and for investment capture. Which is a constant significant percent of the total picture every year.
I **** you not. This is why it's tolerated. Nay, made to happen.**
It's not even new, people just don't like looking at it. There's tons of stories of 1800s homesteaders killing themselves late in life when the government came for their plots. How's the song go? "Move
***** get out da way?"
*both in rentals and in ownership, like it would get
better if you don't own?!
**really, it's just pushing things forward. They'd die, eventually, freeing the resource. But if you drive somebody out 10 years sooner financially, and they live 75 years on average, getting into a house house at maybe 30, that's 45 years, reducing that by 10... what's the percent increase in ownership of housing stock to be made in the turnover? The decrease in housing stock needed? This is market efficiency when it controls the options you have.