A case of accidental landlording

I remember at the height of the housing boom many people joking that you know you're in a real estate bubble when hair dressers and restaurant wait staff talk openly about their real estate investment careers.

Well, my hair dresser unfortunately is now talking about the condo she bought during the madness, can no longer afford due to ballooning payments and can't seem to get rid of. (Perhaps this is a sign that the bottom is near?)

Like many others she has turned to renting the property while she continues to seek a buyer. Some have called this a case of "the accidental landlord," in which property owners turn into landlords as a sort of last resort to mitigate losses from a drawn-out sales process.

"Accidental landlords" can actually lead to income opportunities for real estate agents, a subject Inman News is covering in a special three-part series to be released to subscribers this week. Stay tuned.

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