Why Do Investors Not Sell Underwater Buy-to-Let Property? Irish Evidence
13 Pages Posted: 9 Oct 2013
Date Written: October 8, 2013
Abstract
Using a sample of Irish Buy-to-let residential property investors, we provide a breakdown of their characteristics. We confirm some issues suspected in popular discourse and find new evidence. We provide evidence on the determinants of the decision to sell or not amongst a sample of Irish residential property investors. The data suggest that the typical investor is small scale, and has suffered a perceived loss from peak investment of between 50-60%. Analysis suggests that the decision not to sell property that is ‘underwater’, i.e. where the present market value is less than the outstanding mortgage, is driven mainly by affordability constraints not by biases. Thus a rational set of actions from borrower and lender should be possible.
Keywords: investment mortgages, underwater properties, overconfidence, anchoring, buy-to-let, prospect theory, Ireland
JEL Classification: D03, G02, G18, R30
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation