In real life, Qaddafi got rid of landlords in Libya. It resulted in a lot of housing problems.

Some people don't have wealthy parents that can buy them a place to live outright. There is a need to have housing available that doesn't require someone to have wealthy parents or get out a large loan. The ability to rent a place is important.

The real problem is the high cost to own a place to live which results in people having to rent when they'd rather own a home.