Impact of Investors in Distressed Housing Markets

We examine a recent trend in the market where investors purchase residential properties. We find that investors purchase at a discount of 9.5% compared to individuals purchasing in the same time period and geographic area. More specifically, we find that small investors purchase at a discount of 8.0%, medium investors purchase at a discount of 11.1%, large investors purchase at a discount of 13.6%, and institutional investors purchase at a discount of 7.7%. We also find that the presence of investor buyers in a market helps improve house values. A 10% increase in the percentage of houses purchased by investors in a census block leads to a 0.20% increase in house prices.