514: BiggerNews, October: How Small Landlords Can Beat the Hedge Funds

<p>Once the <strong>housing market started to slide in 2007</strong>, smart investors began buying, and waiting, for rock-bottom prices to kick in. Investors were <strong>buying homes in some of the best markets for dimes on the dollar,</strong> and have seen massive profits whether keeping them as buy-and-hold rentals, BRRRR deals, or flips. While small investors started buying a couple of houses a year, <a href="https://www.biggerpockets.com/blog/impact-institutional-investors" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>institutional investors</strong></a> were doing far, far more.</p><p><strong>Private equity funds</strong>, along with <a href="https://www.biggerpockets.com/blog/2013-02-25-reits" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>REITs</strong></a> and <strong>hedge funds</strong> knew that foreclosed homes were a steal, and their economies of scale made it even easier to turn these financially mismanaged properties into <a href="https://www.biggerpockets.com/blog/2015-07-21-whataes-important-aecf-appreciation" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>appreciation and cash flow</strong></a> kings. As institutional investors began fixing up these homes, listing them for rent, and later selling them, the entire market moved in an upward direction. Now, <a href="https://store.biggerpockets.com/products/first-time-home-buyer" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>first-time homebuyers</strong></a><strong> are competing with these economic powerhouses</strong> to lock down their first primary residence or rental property.</p><p>A man who has been covering this topic for years is The Wall Street Journal's, <a href="https://www.wsj.com/news/author/ryan-dezember" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>Ryan Dezember</strong></a>. Ryan has a keen understanding of<strong> what influences the housing market as a whole</strong>, why institutional investors are making the moves they are, and <strong>what this means for small mom-and-pop landlords</strong>. <a h