Team Thayer Property Servicing

Sustainable homeownership is the “gateway to the middle class” for many Americans and is the primary source of wealth creation for many, which is why increasing the homeownership rate is so critical to a healthy economy, according to a panel at a housing forum in Washington, D.C. on Tuesday. In the “Achieving the American Dream” housing forum, hosted by  First American Financial Corporation , three members of Congress addressed the audience while a panel of experts discussed primarily how to increase the homeownership rate among Latinos and African Americans. Panelist Gary Acosta, Co-Founder and CEO, National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Agents, declared to the agreement of the panel that the gateway to the middle class in America is sustainable homeownership—and that lenders do not need to lower the bar, but instead need to open the credit window. “What that essentially means is we’re not trying to qualify people who probably shouldn’t qualify for a mortgage,” ...

 “What do I need to start investing in real estate?” The answer is more simple than you think. Whenever you get started in a new business, it is easy to get caught up in everything you don’t know. Fear and anxiety can quickly take hold of you if you let them. It is human nature to wait to make your move until everything is lined up perfectly. In reality, however, there will never be a perfect time to enter a new business. You will never know enough or have everything line up as perfectly as you would like. Instead of worrying about having your website up and running or having enough money, you just need to get started taking action. Before you do, here are a few of the essential things you must have in place: 1. A firm plan: Ok, so you are going to be a real estate investor. How are you going to do it? There is too much at stake to simply say that you are going to figure it out as you go. You don’t need a website or even business cards to get started, but you do ne...

The United States housing market is the foundation of our fragile economy, as made evident by the current recession and real estate bubble. Its downward trend in recent years has crippled our economy while placing millions of Americans in financial purgatory. It appears, however, that the worst may be behind us. Pending home sales continue to improve, suggesting that the housing market is slowly returning to normal. Can we attribute this to the benefits of investors? With the housing market primed to remove us from our economic instability, facilitation of this sector should be of utmost importance. The role of residential developers and real estate investors has never been more important. Despite several grossly exaggerated misconceptions, the benefits of investors will play an integral piece in returning the housing market to pre-recession standards. Investors have a measurable and immediate impact on the social good of a geographic region . A symbiotic relationship exists b...

There is a housing shift occurring in the investment market. Major investors are gravitating toward purchasing new homes for rental use. During the housing crash, big investors stocked up on thousands of foreclosed properties for single-family rentals with intentions of selling them when home prices recovered. But they didn’t. Now that the housing market is recovering, foreclosures are low and prices are up, but investors are not selling their properties. Instead,  NBC News  says “they are buying more, and now they are buying new.” “That fruit—cheap foreclosures—offered investors a relatively low-risk play, because they could buy homes at well below the cost of replacement, and not only would they see rental revenue but also property price appreciation,”  NBC News  reporter Diana Olick noted. “As this new interest develops, however, builders are starting to offer institutional buyers bulk discounts. Not only does it help builders grow revenue, but it gets...

Concerns about the potential impact of higher interest rates have sent  real estate investment trusts on a roller coaster ride this year, after chalking up double-digit gains in 2014. Despite their recent fickle behavior, however, this asset class belongs in the diversified portfolios of long-term investors, experts say. What's more, the volatility could provide a buying opportunity. A REIT is simply a company that owns or finances income-producing real estate. Most REITs are traded on major stock exchanges, and investors can purchase a share of the REIT just as they would any other stock. One major draw of REITs is that they provide investors with a  regular income stream , as they typically pay out their taxable income as dividends to shareholders. In the low interest-rate environment that has prevailed in recent years, income investors have turned to REITs to generate potentially higher rates of return than more traditional income-generating investments, such as ...