NUTS & BOLTS THINK REA Y CONFERENCE STRATEGIES: REITs BALTIMORE
NUTS & BOLTS THINK REA Y CONFERENCE STRATEGIES: REITs BALTIMORE
Dream-makers WHY AMERICA’S ‘MOM AND POP’ REAL ESTATE INVESTORS ARE THE KEY TO SOLVING THE COUNTRY’S ONGOING HOUSING MELTDOWN.
mutually beneficial housing solutions to the third of the population that most desperately needs them. The problem is that when it comes to real estate investors, the lawmakers and policymakers have largely turned a blind eye or overlooked them complete- ly. “There is such a lack of understand- ing and awareness of the actual provid- ers of the majority of affordable housing in this country,” observed Brian Wojcik, CEO and founder of diyRealty Inc., an online software that assists landlords with their property management and has a stated purpose of “improving the social responsibility of landlording, which makes affordable rental housing more accessible.” Yet, Wojcik said, U.S.
by Think Realty Staff
H
vides federal leadership for affordable housing policy in this country, defines it as housing—rented or owned—that can be had for 30 percent or less than the median earned income in an area. HUD and the federal government enact policies and legislation designed
ome is where the heart is, but how far would you go to keep
your heart in residence at its current location? More than half of all Ameri- cans in a MacArthur Foundation study said they would give up healthcare, rack up credit-card debt and forego saving for retirement in order to keep their current roof in place over their heads. Those respondents, surveyed between 2011 and 2014, are the lucky ones: Thus far, they have had the option of deciding whether or not to own their own home and to what lengths they might go in order to keep it. For more than a third of the population, however, the situa- tion is more dire: They simply cannot afford to own their own home and, in many cases, will barely scrape by when renting, as well. Zillow Chief Economist Svenja Gudell, Ph.D., [Think Realty “Women to Watch,” March 2017] summed up the housing affordability issue this way in a past interview with TR contributor Carole Ellis: “If you look just at the median or average numbers, it’s easy to gloss over affordability. If you keep digging and look at different subgroups, however, even though in a lot of areas affordability is quite good, these sub- groups are suffering.” She went on to explain that in many markets, the “bottom third of income earners are not only priced out of for- sale housing, but are not really able to afford renting either.” The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), which pro-
to assist the roughly one- third of the country that does not have access to affordable housing because their earned income is too low, local housing costs are too high, or some combination thereof. However, when these policies are implemented, they often actually hinder and harm the population most
housing policy ignores these industry drivers completely, failing to protect them in pub-
The Role of Gentrification in the Affordable Housing Solution
lic policy and even passing legislation intended to help those most in need
of affordable housing that works to the det- riment of investor and buyer, landlord and tenant. Wojcik will be hosting the
by Sonia Booker
I
premier legislative panel of Think Re- alty’s National Conference and Expo in Baltimore, Maryland, on June 24, 2017 at the Baltimore Convention Center. That event will bring real estate investors, legislative activists and experts, and pro- fessional policy-makers and -shapers to- gether under one roof. “We’ll be working together here,” observed Think Realty president Eddie Wilson. “Our members and these professionals will be gaining insight from each other in order to not just boost competitive advantage in their local markets, but to protect the interests of the individual real estate investor, the backbone of our industry and the key to solving the affordable housing crisis in this country, as well.” •
actively involved in providing practical, market-appropriate affordable housing solutions: real estate investors. This is where you, as a real estate investor, come in. Although we may think of large, federally subsidized, multifamily units when we think of affordable housing, the real estate in- vesting community is the source of the vast majority of truly affordable housing that meets specific tenant and would- be homeowners’ needs in this country. Flexible, creative and fully attuned to local market conditions by nature, real estate investors—who by extension tend to be small-business owners, either of- ficially or unofficially—are the entities that are providing workable, productive,
n today’s society, “gentrification” is not what it used to be. Our culture is more equipped with information and resources than any previous. As a result, creating awareness of the issue is the first step in carving out “affordable” living options in today’s urban environment. The problem plaguing “urban” communities in transition is a lack of knowledge. That lack leads to neglect in maintenance of affordable housing op- tions as the area changes. This is not an issue solely for public housing programs, but is highly relevant to the majority of homeowners and renters, people working hard, with good jobs or growing careers, who simply are not afforded housing solutions in the new urban city.
I believe that this awareness should start with the Millennials who wish to live in these urban areas and, further- more, are willing to pioneer them. Members of this particular market sec- tor enjoys a certain lifestyle and has the resources and desire to make a social impact on their communities. Already, they are creatively developing housing options for themselves and others, local business enterprises, and even churches. My company is working on a social campaign that will leverage the creativity of the Millennial generation and the vast potential that comes with being involved in real estate investing to create a pro- gram specifically intended to address the affordable housing crisis in Millennial
communities and urban environments. Our end goal will be to enable people who may never qualify traditionally for the funding required for home owner- ship to still have affordable access to it in less than two decades while also creating a new generation of socially responsible real estate investors. •
Sonia Booker is a Think Realty 2017 “Woman toWatch in Real Estate” and an active member of the Atlanta, Georgia, investing community. She has been
featured in O, Magazine for her educational and outreach programs that focus on teachingmen and women to build lastingwealth through real estate investing. Soniawill be speaking at Think Realty’s Baltimore National Conference and Expo on June 24, 2017, at the Baltimore Convention Center.
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