It's like... I try to think of what an "ethical landlord" might look like, and I just can't picture it. Realistically the only """service""" they provide is not having to save for a down payment and fixing things that break*(I know they don't, but I'm trying to imagine what it would take for one to be ethical, so they actually would be in this hypothetical)*. The things a land lord will take care the ability of their tenants to build equity. That's the benefit of owning. Pro-landlord people will say landlords take the risk of property values decreasing, but that's pretty rare. Especially considering landlords inherently are taking up stock. So to be generous I'll assume property value is static.

Even in this crazy optimistic, crazy generous hypothetical, land lords still rob tenants of equity because they aren't able to get a down payment together. The only thing I can see making it fair is the landlord gives that equity back, either by charging exactly what the property's mortgage is or transferring a portion of the ownership over every payment and... Now wait a second... This sounds like... BANKS. A MORTGAGE. Seriously. Every time I try to imagine what it would take to really really be an ethical landlord it just comes back to being a bank or mortgage.

Maybe there's some place for folks to act as very very small banks and give a mortgage to someone like this, but like... It's so convoluted.

TLDR: I view them as leeches even when I'm giving them every benefit of the doubt in a favorable hypothetical.