By JARED WHITLEY Mat Ishbia is building his dream home in Michigan, and he’s tearing down five other homes to do it. It’s a display of extravagance that has housing advocates and social justice activists looking askance. At a time when Michigan is expected to lose thousands of affordable housing units over the next few years, particularly in the hard-hit Detroit area, the United Wholesale Mortgage CEO is building a 60,000-square-foot mansion in the Motor City suburb of Bloomfield Township. To build his 14-acre estate, Ishbia is tearing down his current 22,000-square-foot house, which is just eight years old, as well as five neighboring homes. Once completed, the Ishbia compound will include a trampoline park, reflecting pool, statues, tennis court,…

Real estate investors bought 80,293 properties in Q4 2021, a record 18.4% of homes sold. Redfin reported that investor purchases were up from 43.9% YOY, though they fell 9.1% from Q3’s peak, likely due to stock shortages that impacted regular homebuyers and investors alike. Seasonality also contributed to the quarter-to-quarter drop, as the housing market typically slows in the winter. More than three-quarters of homes bought by investors (75.3%) were all-cash purchases. Atlanta saw the most investor activity in Q4 at 32.7% of market share, followed by Charlotte (32.1%), Jacksonville (29.8%), Las Vegas (29.2%), and Phoenix (28.4%). These are all popular destinations for moving Americans and have seen high demand during the Great Migration. “While record-high home prices are problematic…

Housing Shortage

As Americans Struggle To Afford Mortgages, UWM’s Ishbia Tears Down Homes To Build Mansion

Investors Bought 80,000 Homes In Q4 2021