>you're buying an asset class that has a history of appreciating in value over 100+ years that you can get incredible leverage on

This is precisely the problem. It's not just companies buying up homes, it's also private individuals buying up housing to relist on AirBnB or other sites in order to further extract value out of their purchase.

If you look at a country like say, Japan they don't have this issue because housing depreciates and is not treated as an investment.