April 6, 2011 (Jeff Alan)
Homebuilder Beazer Homes has started a new division to buy homes that were built after 2004 that are primarily foreclosures and short sales, and plans to rent them out in housing markets where many people are having trouble qualifying for home loans.
Starting in the Phoenix area, the builder hopes to have more than 100 homes in its portfolio by the end of fiscal 2011.
Beazer and other new home builders have been suffering declining sales as pre-owned home prices continue to decline due to the large amount of foreclosures hitting the market, making it difficult for new homebuilders to compete.
Beazer reports that orders for new homes fell 24 percent in the quarter ending in December 2010. The builder said that it may expand the plan to Nevada and California and that they expect to sell the homes when the housing market recovers.
The U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) reported in March, that sales of new single family homes dropped 16.9 percent in February compared to January.
Tags: Beazer, new homes, foreclosures, short sales, rentals, declining sales, homebuilders, housing market
Source:
Reuters