Some cities in Ohio have real estate markets that are flat.

Question

Some cities in Ohio have real estate markets that are flat. Few homes or apartments, if any, even go on the market, and those that do are difficult to sell. But many of these same towns contain numerous, lucrative rental truck shops.
 
Which of the following statements, if true, offers the best reconciliation of this apparent discrepancy?
 
 
(A) The rental trucks companies are franchises of corporations that began out of state.
(B) The few homes which sell within this community are quite expensive.
(C) Many people in these cities own no car.
(D) These cities are home to universities with large populations.
(E) The trucks rented out by these companies are every bit as reliable as a truck you might buy new.

duttsit · Answer

D is the only one, though not clear, close to explain anything.

gmat_crack · Answer

I think answer is B

'cause if houses are expensive then people will not buy them... and people will use trucks to rent the home....
Many be I'm wrong...

christoph · Answer

A)...franchises are not part of the rental market b/c they depend on the holding company and report their profits only to it.

nakib77 · Answer

Man this is tough!

I will choose C. many people don't own cars. so they rent trucks.

christoph · Answer

who takes E) ?

desiguy · Answer

I would say D

There has to be another reason associated with moving things as to why the rental companies still exists.

gamjatang · Answer

I vote for (D).

University students come and go, and they have no reason to OWN a house. However, as they come and go frequently, they need to RENT trucks.

ywilfred · Answer

Narrowed down to B and E. 

I'll take E. (B) suggests the homes are expensive, but it doesn't mean the trucks come cheap, as we're not told what it costs to rent one in the passage. (E) does however say if you can rent a truck and it's still as reliable as a new one, then might as well save some money and rent a truck, as buying will definitely cost more. However, this cannot apply to a house. You can't expect a second hand house to be as 'reliable' (new, free from cracks, bad plastering etc...) as a new one.

rigger · Answer

I go with D. Students only stay temporary within the dormitories. They would move after school is done.

GMATT73 · Answer

OA is D.

CORRECT ANSWER: D
YOUR LATEST ANSWER: A 
Explanation: 

Step 1: ID Question Type and Task
The presence of a discrepancy that needs to be reconciled indicates that this is a Paradox Question.
 
Task: Find the seemingly contradictory issue and pose it to yourself as a question.
 
Step 2: Read the Argument and Extract Necessary Information: 
The necessary information is the paradox, identify the paradox and pose it to yourself as a question. 
 
Paradox: Why would a city that has a flat real estate market be able to support a thriving rental truck industry?
 
Step 3: Formulate an Answer to the Question
Formulate a resolution to the paradox (if possible). Since more people are renting trucks in the area than are supported by the needs of the cities real estate markets the most likely explanation is that the business for the truck rentals comes from outside the real estate market in those cities.
 
Remember, the best answer provides a connection between the two sides of the paradox without changing or discounting either side.
 
Step 4: Eliminate Answer Choices:
 
(A) This explains how the truck rental agencies came to be, and not why they have so much business.
 
(B) Doesn`t explain. This only addresses the side of the paradox from the real estate perspective and isn`t sufficient to resolve the discrepancy.
 
(C) Doesn't explain. This only explains why the people in the town would use truck rental agencies, and not why the truck rental agencies have so many patrons.
 
(D) Keep. This explains why many more people frequent the truck rental agencies than would be expected given the real estate market.

(E) Doesn`t explain. Only deals with the motivations of the people renting the trucks not the reason for the number of patrons in the truck rental agencies.

rahulraao · Answer

This was a real tough one!
I pick D as it is the only one that explains what is required.

If houses are rarely on the market, then either they are self owned or they are rented. But as far as I know, in the US renting is usually through the real estate brokers/agents - this means technically the houses on rent are on the market.

SO, there has to be an alternative reason for the existence of trucks. D is the only one which provides that - lots of students!!

ywilfred · Answer

But that would require the assumption that the students even want to rent trucks, right? Can we even assume that?

rahulraao · Answer

To solve this paradox, the first thing that we need to do is to find alternative uses to justify the presence of so many trucks. Because, only an alternative use of trucks (outside the real estate market) can explain this! SO I guess it becomes obvious that D is valid. I sense that students renting trucks becomes kind of inherent!!

GMATT73 · Answer

Wilfred>

My take is this: the presence of a large student population would spur a demand for rental trucks to shuttle their personal belongings back and forth each new semester (the average independent student moves 4-5 times over the course of 4 years). Additionally, the students would most likely not be in the financial position to buy a home or other real estate property.

Some cities in Ohio have real estate markets that are flat.

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