The Unseen Hand Reshaping Your Daily Life
You buy groceries at a store owned by KKR. Your dentist works for a Blackstone portfolio company. Your apartment building is managed by a Carlyle Group subsidiary. Welcome to the age of “Everything Private Equity”—where nearly every routine transaction now enriches Wall Street’s shadow economy.
By the Numbers: PE’s Stranglehold
- 60% of US pediatric dentistry practices (vs. 10% in 2000)
- 72% of newspaper circulation (including your local paper)
- 1 in 3 single-family home purchases in 2023
- 40% of hospital ER staffing
The Playbook: Buy, squeeze, sell—often in just 18-36 months
5 Industries Being Gutted
1. Healthcare: The Profiteering Cure
- PE-owned hospitals charge 27% more for identical procedures (JAMA Study)
- Staffing cuts: Nurse-to-patient ratios drop 40% post-buyout
- The Stealth Monopoly: 7 firms control 80% of anesthesia services
2. Your Neighborhood’s Slow Death
- Restaurant chains: Loaded with debt, 53% file bankruptcy within 5 years
- Vet clinics: Appointment times halved, upsells quadrupled
- Car washes: $20 “premium” cycles now standard
3. Housing Crisis, Inc.
- Rent hikes: PE landlords raise rates 3x faster than mom-and-pops
- “Algorithm collusion”: RealPage software accused of price-fixing 4M units
- The REIT Shell Game: Your rent payment gets sliced into Wall Street bonds
4. The Funeral Monopoly
- Service Corp International (Blackstone-backed) owns:
- 1,500+ funeral homes
- 40% of crematoriums
- “Grief pricing”: Caskets marked up 600%
5. Your Pension’s Betrayal
- Public pensions pay PE 2% fees for sub-market returns
- Teachers’ retirement funds now bankroll the firms raising their rents
The Human Cost
- ER wait times up 58% at PE-owned hospitals
- Local news deserts: 2,100 papers closed since 2005
- Small business apocalypse: 40% fewer startups than 1980s
How to Fight Back
- Follow the Money: Use [OpenSecrets.org] to trace local business ownership
- Vote With Your Wallet:
- Credit unions over PE-owned banks (TD, Santander)
- Independent pharmacies (avoid CVS/Walgreens)
- Policy Pressure: Support the Stop Wall Street Looting Act
The Coming Reckoning
With $3.7 trillion in dry powder waiting to be deployed, PE’s next targets are:
- Public infrastructure (toll roads, water systems)
- Childcare centers
- Renewable energy projects
🛑 Bottom Line: What Wall Street calls “value creation,” your community experiences as the slow-motion liquidation of everyday life.
💡 Check Your Exposure: Search your zip code on [PrivateEquityStakeTracker.com]—you’ll never shop the same way again.
💬 Has PE ruined a business you loved? Share your story below.
