Homebuilders are reportedly piecing together a massive plan to fix the affordability crisis through the construction of “Trump Homes.”
According to Bloomberg, the remarkable plan “calls for builders to sell entry-level homes into a pathway-to-ownership program funded by private investors.”
One way this might work is that investors would rent a home out to tenants — and after a certain number of years, the tenants’ monthly rent would start counting toward a down payment.
So far, two homebuilders — Lennar Corp. and Taylor Morrison Home Corp. — have signed up.
“The industry is colloquially calling the proposal ‘Trump Homes’ because it could give the president a signature program to address the housing shortage,” Bloomberg notes.
Major builders said to weigh plan for 1 million ‘Trump homes’ Per Bloomberg pic.twitter.com/NXNGSjSrH6
— OSZ (@OpenSourceZone) February 3, 2026
“We are encouraged by the thoughtful discussions between home builders and the administration that could help more Americans step into home ownership,” a Taylor Morrison spokesperson said.
The proposal comes at a time when many Americans are struggling to find a permanent place to live.
“The proposal … could help meet that demand while giving the president a signature program,” Bloomberg notes. “That’s similar to the ideas behind TrumpRx, for addressing the cost of prescription medication, and wealth-building Trump Accounts — that the president could use to motivate voters in the coming midterm elections.”
However, the White House hasn’t signed off on it yet.
“The homebuilders are presenting a lot of different ideas,” Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte told Fox News earlier this week. “I know that one of them or two of them had floated this ‘Trump homes’ idea. It’s not something that we’re actively looking at, but look, we appreciate all ideas. All ideas are welcome.”
Moreover, the plan is facing some pushback from so-called experts.
“Rent-to-own has not had a good track record in the United States despite the best efforts of investors to make it work,” rental housing industry consultant Jay Parsons said. “It’s really important that with whatever program we create, we learn those lessons.”
Indeed, previous rent-to-own projects were bashed for relying on predatory tactics. One tactic reportedly involved enrolling people who were unlikely to succeed in obtaining a home and then charging them fees.
🚫 RENT TO OWN 🚫
Don’t do it.
There is no charity or “providing opportunities” by landlords
You, as prospective buyer, pay higher monthly premiums to lease and bear all the risk if home values fall, you can’t get approved, etc
It should be called “rent to get owned” pic.twitter.com/o4PSQ1X1c9
— Amy Nixon (@texasrunnerDFW) December 23, 2024
But following the U.S. foreclosure crisis, some homebuilders started proposing ways in which rent-to-own could work without exploiting/taking advantage of wannabe homebuyers.
“Some companies let renters lock in a price that they could purchase the home for at a point in the future, while others offered coaching to help tenants manage their finances,” Bloomberg notes.
Eventually, even celebrities got in on it, with actor/singer Will Smith and rapper Jay-Z investing in the rent-to-own startup Landis Technologies a couple of years ago.
Jay Z and Will Smith Have Invested N69.9 Billion in Start-Up That Helps Renters Become Homeowners
Jay Z and Will Smith have merged as investors in the real estate start-up Landis Technologies, which seeks to use a rent-to-own finance technique to pic.twitter.com/UVidHMJbth
— Voice Of Meta-VOM (@Voiceofmeta) July 28, 2022
Then, when mortgage rates spiked in 2022, interest in this model began to quickly recede.
“Blackstone Inc., which bought Home Partners in 2021, eventually folded the company into its Tricon Residential platform, while Divvy sold itself to Brookfield Asset Management Ltd.,” according to Bloomberg.
Interest is now starting to rebuild around the idea of pairing the market’s rent-to-own idea with federal intervention. Speaking with Bloomberg last month, Pretium co-President Stephen Scherr sketched out a framework for how this might look.
“Imagine a scenario in which rent is paid; money is held back to provide against a deposit account for a down payment,” he said. “Imagine where we were to link arms with homebuilders who could build smaller, more affordable homes.”
Lennar, for its part, has said it’s ready to increase production once demand increases.
“We’re very well positioned to provide the affordable supply that the market needs when demand is ultimately activated by either lower interest rates or government-sponsored programs to enable affordability,” Lennar CEO Stuart Miller said in December.
Writers and editors can be contacted at [email protected] with feedback, tips, or corrections.
V. Saxena is a staff writer with a decade of experience as a professional writer, and a lifetime of experience as an avid news junkie. He holds a degree in computer technology from Purdue University. Saxena also contributes to BizPac Review.
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