slumlord

[ sluhm-lawrd ]

noun

1. a landlord who owns slum buildings, especially one who fails to maintain or improve the buildings and charges tenants exorbitant rents.

slumlord

/ ˈslʌmˌlɔːd /

noun

1. informal.
   an absentee landlord of slum property, esp one who profiteers

Word History and Origins

Origin of slumlord¹

First recorded in 1950–55; slum + lord

Example Sentences

He is a slumlord collecting rent from poor tenants for his abusive father.

From Salon

"In Colorado, they're so crazy they're taking over sections of the state," he falsely claimed, citing a bogus viral story about Venezuelan gangs taking over an apartment complex in Aurora, a claim denied by police, the city's Republican mayor and residents, who say the claim was spread by a slumlord to deflect blame for poor conditions at their property.

From Salon

The tenants accused Aslanian of being a slumlord, harrassing and threatening them in his attempts to empty the apartments.

From Los Angeles Times

Whitney is the heiress to her parents’ slumlord fortune, a fact she pretends to distance herself from but can’t quite.

From New York Times

Whitney sees it as a brand building exercise, a chance to show how good she is, a way of assuaging her guilt over her slumlord parents’ financial support.

From New York Times