Origins of the Landlord

• If someone does not own their own home, chances are good that they have a written, contractually binding lease agreement with an individual or a company, whereby they pay a certain amount of money each month for the duration of the agreed upon lease in return for the right to live in a dwelling that is owned by someone else. In todays modern world, this relationship is purely professional. Tenants exchange a monthly fee for a clean and well maintained place to live. The owner of the dwelling assumes ultimate liability for insurance and major repairs, while the tenant assumes responsibility of basic upkeep of the place. Above and beyond that, there is not usually a close relationship between the two parties. There was a time, however, when this arrangement was a matter of survival in a harsh and anarchistic environment, quite literally life and death in many cases. The historical origins of the word landlord date back to Medieval Europe, between the years 800 and 1200 AD. At that time, there was no longer an effective supreme governing body, as the Roman Empire had lost much of its power. The small farming villages that dotted the countryside found themselves repeatedly playing an unwilling host to destruction and pillaging by thieves and even Vikings who would encroach upon the tiny farming communities and steal their food and supplies, burn down their homes, rape the women and waste the men. People had no way to protect themselves from the brutalities of these traveling marauders, and families were in fear for their lives with no one to turn to. Seeing an opportunity, a handful of brave and wealthy knights stepped in to assist the farmers in securing peace, as well as to ensure their own personal financial gain. They became known as the landlord of their land and they were seen as protectors, and for the most part they were very much esteemed. They bought up large amounts of farmland and offered it up to the small, poor farmers, so that they might build a home there and grow their crops. The people who lived and farmed on the land, called Serfs, were protected from harm by the strong and physically powerful land owner and his army of men, who patrolled the areas, kept the peace and discouraged thievery. The Serfs, in return, paid rent in the form of a hefty portion of their yearly crops, which went into food storage bins. This was a win/win situation, because the serfs had a safe place to raise a family, and the landlord had his pockets growing deeper from all of the food that he could then turn around and sell for a profit. There was a certain amount of control and obligation in this scenario, but it was a better option than going it alone and risking your familys lives. Today, a landlord is not seen as a protector of life and property, per se. We have police officers for that now. Nor is he seen as a brave knight, valiant and strong. However, there is still a large and important responsibility for the modern day landlord to uphold. This is to provide a clean, well maintained and functional living space for his tenants. And when one considers how important it is to feel secure and safe in our homes, the value here cannot be understated. It is a noble endeavor to offer up homes for families in need, and the win/win situation still exists, without quite so much drama. Landlord

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Disclamer: This entry is intended to promote our partner StorageMart and some or all participants received compensation.

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