by Laura Williams, Center for Housing Policy
The National Association of Realtors recently released its 2012
Investment and Vacation Home Buyers Survey, and my own reaction was
something along the lines of, “Finally!” Not that NAR was delayed in their
release or anything, but that survey data is beginning to pick up some trends
those of us in the foreclosure field had been suspecting for some time:
individual investors are becoming a significant portion of existing home sales,
with the idea of creating Mom and Pop rental options for single family homes.
As NAR’s chief economist was quoted in their release as
saying, rents are rising and home prices are still low, making small-time
rental management an appealing business opportunity for those who can afford
it; and many can, it seems, as nearly half (49 percent) of investment buyers
made all-cash purchases of their properties.
The good news is that these investors are helping to absorb
the foreclosures that are hitting the market, preventing further dips in
prices. The bad news is that rental management can be a difficult endeavor,
particularly as buyers accumulate more properties (nearly half of investors
said they planned to purchase another property within two years) or get farther
from home (30 percent were more than 100 miles away).
The last round of stabilization funding (NSP3) included many plans pursuing
scattered-site rental management. Most of those are on a much larger scale
than these individual investors would ever dream of, but together they
demonstrate a continued need to study this aspect of the rental market and
create resources for landlords.
At the Center, we’ve already begun work in this area, and great resources are available from many other organizations. What other resources do you know of, or what resources do you think we still need?
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