What happens when private equity buys homes in your neighborhood

So we should have smallhold landlords that frequently skirt rental regulations and are difficult to hold accountable?

In Europe, landlords violate regulations much less often than in the US, because the tenants renovate and maintain the properties, instead of the landlords. It's much cheaper to rent in Europe, because it's much cheaper for a tenant to fix something small themselves, than involve a landlord, a property management company, and a service company.