Falling Home Prices, Rising Rents Spell Opportunity for Real Estate Investors

DALLAS, May 1, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- With home prices declining for the sixth straight month, according to The Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller home-price index, and rents continuing to rise, it's an ideal time for investors to take a hard look at the single family homes for rental market.

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"It's a buyer's market for people looking to profit from single family home rentals," says Charlie Calise, a Dallas real estate investor.  "There's never been a better time to build a real estate portfolio. The costs are the lowest in recent history."

Calise is a HomeVestor® franchisee, which makes him a member of the largest professional home buying network in the U.S.  And the network is continuing to add new independently owned and operated franchisees.  According to co-president David Hicks, HomeVestors of America—the We Buy Ugly Houses® franchise—has experienced rapid growth since the start of the home mortgage and foreclosure crisis. 

"This year alone we have already added 39 new franchisees," he explained. "It shows that investors increasingly believe that there is opportunity in the market."

And it's an opportunity that should remain strong for the foreseeable future.

According to Harvard's Joint Center for Housing Studies, rents rose more than 5 percent last year in many US cities and renter household growth has outpaced owner household growth since 2006.

"Many people are in financial trouble, some of it caused by a housing foreclosure, and they just don't have the credit to buy," Calise said, "so renting is their only option."

Since its founding in 1996, HomeVestors franchisees have purchased over 50,000 homes nationwide. "Our franchisees buy houses that no one else wants, then fix them up and turn them into income producers. So it's a win-win proposition for the owners, the franchisees and often the neighborhood," Hicks said.

For Calise, teaming up with HomeVestors is an easy way to participate in the rental market. "For a very reasonable cost, HomeVestors can put a potential investor in business and have him or her buying houses in a short amount of time," he explained. "In addition to providing a source of financing for franchisees, they are a tremendous lead generator."

HomeVestors franchisees go through a five-day training program and have access to proprietary software to help them analyze potential purchases and determine repair costs, Hicks said. Franchisees also receive market research information to assist them in finding and buying houses. "Being a part of HomeVestors is much more than rehabbing houses," Hicks explained.  "A HomeVestors franchisee benefits from hundreds of leads generated by the HomeVestors national brand heard on radio spots, and seen on television ads, billboards and other advertising."

HomeVestors was recently selected as a recipient of Franchise Business Review's 2012 Franchisee Satisfaction Award, the franchise industry's most prestigious award. Additionally, Opportunity World named HomeVestors as one of the Hottest 125 Franchises of 2012 and one of the Top 20 Veteran-Friendly Franchises.

About  HomeVestors of America Inc.
Dallas-based HomeVestors of America, Inc. is the largest buyer of houses in the U.S., with 50,000 houses bought since 1996. HomeVestors trains and supports its independently owned and operated franchisees that specialize in buying and rehabbing residential properties.  Most commonly known as the "We Buy Ugly Houses®" company, HomeVestors strives to make a positive impact in each community.  In 2012, for the seventh consecutive year, HomeVestors was among the prestigious Franchise Business Review's "Top 50 Franchises," a distinction awarded to franchisors with the highest level of franchisee satisfaction.  For more information, visit www.HomeVestors.com.

CONTACT: Susie Lomelino
[email protected]
214.269.2092

SOURCE HomeVestors of America, Inc.