U.S. investment properties now make up a third of existing home market

U.S. houses bought as investments represented nearly a third of all existing home sales in the country last year according to a new report by the National Association of Realtors (NAR).
The 2012 NAR Investment and Vacation Home Survey revealed investment-home sales rocketed by 64.5% to 1.23 million last year, compared to 749,000 in 2010.

NAR vice-president Moe Veissi said: “Investors are already absorbing much of the nation’s housing inventory, and Realtors are concerned that a bulk sale or rental program in areas where such a program is unnecessary could delay or impede local market recoveries.”

Veissi added that the government must do more to help buyers find financing. A recent letter from NAR to the Federal Reserve Board, Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., Department of Housing and Urban Redevelopment, Federal Housing Finance Agency, Department of the Treasury and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency has urged decision-makers and lenders to focus on creating availability of financing for qualified home buyers and investors to increase the real estate-owned (bank-owned) absorption rate.

“More must be done to expand the availability of financing for qualified home buyers and investors to help draw down REO inventory rather than focusing on programs that could line the pockets of Wall Street companies and financial investment firms,” said Veissi. “NAR’s research shows that nearly half of investors last year – 49 percent – paid all cash, underscoring the tight credit issue.”

http://www.opp.org.uk/news-article.php?id=6400