In Thursday’s Summit Daily News, there was a letter advocating rent caps.

This despite the fact that the cities that have them have a plethora of units standing empty because the landlord cannot or will not invest in improvements that he can’t recoup. The writers suggested cap of $1,800 for a two-bedroom unit demonstrated a complete lack of understanding of economics and highlights the folly of rent caps.

Before I sold my two-bedroom unit in Frisco, I added up all the costs — the mortgage, taxes, heating, insurance, homeowners association fees and miscellaneous maintenance because I was considering renting it long term when I moved to Silverthorne. The ultimate number was far in excess of the $1,800 proposed by the writer.

That number also does not include even a small profit for the work involved or the risk — be it non payment or property damage — any landowner incurs when he rents his property. Unless some governmental entity is willing to recompense the property owner for the loss, I can’t imagine anyone willing to undertake such an arrangement.