Erika Barris

Still, she says, even in the bananas period, it's hard to tell how much the higher prices were because big landlords were in the mix and how much was just because the neighborhoods they picked were popular.

Prices were going to go up anyway.

Which brings us to the executive order that Trump signed last week.

The order is interesting in what it does not do.

It does not ban big institutional investors from buying homes, though Trump has called on Congress to pass a law that would do that.

Caitlin says she's skeptical that will change much because these big Wall Street firms, they don't need the government to back them.

They have other ways of funding their purchases that already give them a leg up.

The most interesting thing in the order might be the part that directs the FTC and DOJ to investigate any big home purchases on antitrust grounds.

As in, see if their pricing or vacancy policies amount to illegal anti-competitive practices.

And Caitlin thinks that could have a chilling effect.

It could keep big investors from buying.

Some relief for some people.

Maybe.

Coming up after the break, there is another thing the Trump administration is doing to try to make housing more affordable, which has to do with a complex financial instrument that also was the inspiration for the Planet Money podcast.

Yeah.

When it comes to the Trump administration's proposals for making housing more affordable, the biggest thing to officially come out is that executive order limiting big institutional investors.

This is about mortgage rates.

Mortgage rates are so important for housing affordability because they define how much you pay every month on your loan.

And Trump is trying various ways to get rates down, including serious attacks on the Federal Reserve and its independence.

I love it how you introduce yourself.