MARKET & TRENDS
CORPORATE SIEGE
Corporate Investors vs. Homeowners WHERE WILL THIS MODERN-DAY DAVID VERSUS GOLIATH TALE LEAD?
by Taylor Miller
he real estate investing market has always been a lucrative
annual revenue. How are everyday buyers expected to compete with ultra-wealthy investors? Corporate investors bought up nearly a quarter of all homes sold in America in 2021, according to an analysis of CoreLogic data. This new trend threatens to push America into a nation of renters. Corporations can afford to muscle just about any buyer off the negotiation table for a suburban single-family home. By paying top dollar, corporate entities create a more competitive market in which home prices are inflated. These
conditions make less room for everyday homebuyers who must stick to a budget in order to make the mortgage payment each month. When corporate buyers descend in a large scale on any particular community, the impact is troubling. Soon, all ”For Sale” homes in that neighborhood reflect a higher price because of nearby recent comparable sales. These higher prices eliminate the opportunity for home ownership for many middle-class families, forcing them into a situation where they must either move further from
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pursuit. Its roots trace back as far as the late 19th century. Since then, the market has been forced to evolve through several transitionary periods such as the Great Depression and the housing crisis of 2008. We may be on the doorstep of a new transitionary period with the dawn of corporate investing in the residential housing market. This modern David versus Goliath story pits everyday prospective homebuyers against corporations with billions in
38 | think realty magazine :: march – april 2023
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