REO-to-Rental Model Becomes ‘Hottest’ Emerging Asset Class

Panelists at this week’s American Securitization Forum in Las Vegas generally agreed that the REO-to-rental model will rank as the “hottest emerging asset class” of 2013. According to Thomas Hiner, a partner with the firm of Hunton & Williams, rental demand is on pace to grow by approximately 6.6 million units through 2016. In that time, about 4.2 million new renters will expand the marketplace. A wide array of factors will stimulate rental housing growth moving forward, most notably the large supply of housing that is now transitioning into the rental space. Hiner, though, notes that challenges continue to loom in the REO-to-rental sector, such as knowing how to structure the assets and understanding that the rental-asset class is very different from traditional mortgage servicing. | Read More