@JessTheUnstill the landlords don't pocket most of that money--they're paying mortgages (plus interenst), property taxes, appliance loans, repair, easements the bulk of what they make is on the sale of the property that "magically" appreciates.
Ask to see your landlord's books? Little individual middlemen aren't the ones accumulating wealth, at least not until they sell--and that's the definition of a market gamble. They're playing the game, but the game is what's evil. Peg the rule-writers.