The difference is that all those parties serve a necessary function. We could debate the tax office - arguably the function of a transaction tax is precisely to deter speculation or sales for short-term use.

Some speculators serve a necessary function but many do not. In my area it's not uncommon to see homes listed where the last sale was ~6 months ago and it's clear they just slapped some paint on it, replaced appliances in ways that are not generally to my taste, and then doubled the asking price.

Yes, and those people aren't landlords renting the property.

So I'm not certain how to tie that back to the original discussion about not needing a special case to handle people accumulating multiple residential buildings.

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Side note - I don't see this case pretty much anywhere (and I'm literally in the process of looking at homes). I do see cases where a home sold 6 months to a year ago and the new price is ~10% higher, and I do see cases where a home sold in 2021/2022 and now the price is 2x higher.

But what I don't see any of is doubled sales price in a 6 month window with just a new coat of paint.

So I'm not certain how this is relevant at all given it's non-existent in any of the markets I'm looking at.