Institutional Investors Create New Asset Class - What Do You Think About It?

[Jessica Swingle]

Hi all.

I've been reading a lot lately about institutional REITs and came across this article today: Starwood Waypoint Rises in First Day of Trading as a REIT (Bloomberg).

"Corporate landlords have raised more than $20 billion to buy as many as 200,000 homes in the past two years, creating a new institutional asset class out of the traditional mom-and-pop business of single-family rentals."

My question is for buy & hold investors:

Are you seeing the impact of these big REITs in your local markets? Do you think institutions will ultimately push out the small investor in certain areas? For those of you who market for your own deals, are you seeing increased competition from the big companies?

Just curious what your thoughts and experiences are regarding the changes in the "landlord" landscape.

Cheers,

Jessica