Because housing is considered mostly a for-profit business in this country. We have substandard poorly maintained public housing and co-ops with multi-year wait lists but that is the exception and not the norm. If you are not employed in a lucrative trade, white collar job, or don't have family money and live in an urban area your fate is to live in a multigenerational roach and bedbug infested shithole with a landlord who would sell your ass for TicTacs. Not even orange or wintergreen TicTacs - the plain ass white mint ones.