The energy and enthusiasm were strong, with accolades coming from Rent 2 Own operators and visitors alike.
By the end of the 2020 Rent 2 Own Virtual Summit on October 16, three new RTO providers had already applied to join CAROP.
That’s what you’d consider a wildly successful summit! The directors who’d put it together wore justified smiles as the day concluded with a rousing game of Quarantine Quest.
Before that, though, we’d all been treated to two Rent to Own panels, four professional speakers, opportunities for interaction and Q + A in the “hallway chats” in between, and the Annual General Meeting.
It all happened via Zoom, which went without a hitch, thanks to Paul Copcutt, our contracted technical liaison. About 50 registrants tuned in for the event, with a good mix of RTO operators, investors, realtors and others interested in our industry.
The day’s tone was set early by a panel of directors, seasoned RTO operators. A strong theme–that rent to own is a social enterprise with the best interests of our clients paramount–surfaced repeatedly thereafter, throughout the day.
There followed professional input from Mortgage Broker Brian Hogben, Lawyer Rod Refcio, Investor Coach Limor Markman, and Realtor Mike Sherrard.
In a rapidly changing mortgage environment that’s making it extremely difficult for people to qualify for mortgages, rent to own provides a fourth lending option, said Hogben. But many brokers are not familiar with it. He urged Rent 2 Own operators to get the message out to brokers that RTO is that viable fourth option, easier to qualify for than A or B lender mortgages, but with a much better exit strategy for the client than typical private money.
“Get it in writing!” was Refcio’s repeated advice. He said that when it comes to the legal basis of rent to own “it’s the wild west out there,” but, due to the growth of private real estate transactions, including RTO, regulation is surely around the corner. He identified a number of court rulings that have classified rent to own contracts to be bilateral, not unilateral contracts and that separate tenancy contracts from option contracts. In the absence of regulation, he emphasized, make sure your contracts contain clauses that safeguard you.
Markman shared how the Rent to Own strategy meets the three main concerns most investors have: that they get consistent strong returns, that they have a high degree of security, and that they have control over their investments. Additionally, it provides the hands-off management and low/no fees that investors prefer, thus producing an asymmetrical risk/reward curve; all this, while giving them the satisfaction of contributing to improving people’s lives.
Sherrard said the key to success for a realtor in a challenging market is to be creative, specifically, to become a problem solver. He shared how, in a down market, his business grew dramatically, with 50% of his deals coming from people unable to sell with other realtors, and half of those through rent to own, all of which were at full list price and full commission. He said the secret to his success was utilizing social media and urged rent to own providers also to utilize it in a much bigger way. “Lead with value, and people will come to you.”
In between, a second panel of rent 2 own operators (not CAROP directors) reinforced the professional nature of their RTO operations, shared insights they are gleaning from their growing experience and reinforced the enthusiasm that never seemed to diminish. Outgoing president Terry Hepditch repeatedly enthused how impressed he was with the integrity and quality of rent to own operators.
The AGM heard a summary report on the status of CAROP from Hepditch, retained next year’s membership fees at $299, adopted a budget of $12,910, and elected to the Board, Limor Markman, Joe Migadel, Zach Cahill and Jeff Belanger to fill the expired terms of Markman, Hepditch and AJ Hazzi (thus, increasing the Board by one). The members also gave the board the authority to appoint returning director Alfonso Salemi, who had energetically hosted the event, as the new president. Other returning directors are Dale Monette and Ron Geddert.
With such success, it’s an open question as to whether next year’s Summit will return to the onsite format in an attractive location, as before, repeat as an online event or perhaps a hybrid.
The conclusion for the day: Rent to Own is a credible and growing industry, with very high standards and professional operations, at least among those providers represented by their membership in CAROP.
Complete video packages of the entire day are available for purchase for $49 – available here https://www.carop.ca/2020summit