‘Lease-to-own’ arrangements gain traction in shaky market

Home sellers today who are having difficulty selling in a slow market may be interested in lease-to-own as a way of encouraging a future sale and generating rental income while they wait. Would-be home purchasers who have seen their credit scores decline because of payment problems or who can’t meet the higher credit scores and down payments required today are attracted to lease-to-own as a possible avenue to homeownership. The subprime mortgage — an alternative route to homeownership — has been closed and will stay closed indefinitely.