A new push from President Donald Trump aims to curb the growing role of large corporate investors in the U.S. housing market, with the stated goal of preserving homeownership opportunities for American families.

In a post on Truth Social on Wednesday, Trump said he is taking steps to stop corporations and large institutional investors from purchasing additional single-family homes, a practice that has expanded rapidly in recent years and has been blamed by many analysts for worsening affordability and straining neighborhoods.

Trump also urged lawmakers to turn the policy into permanent law, arguing that congressional action is needed to ensure future administrations cannot reverse the restriction and reopen the market to large-scale investors.

“For a very long time, buying and owning a home was considered the pinnacle of the American Dream. It was the reward for working hard, and doing the right thing,” Trump wrote in the post, “but now, because of the Record High Inflation caused by Joe Biden and the Democrats in Congress, that American Dream is increasingly out of reach for far too many people, especially younger Americans.”

He expanded on that position in the same post, writing:
“It is for that reason, and much more, that I am immediately taking steps to ban large institutional investors from buying more single-family homes, and I will be calling on Congress to codify it. People live in homes, not corporations. I will discuss this topic, including further Housing and Affordability proposals, and more, at my speech in Davos in two weeks.”

Recent data highlight the scale of investor activity in the housing market. In one quarter last year alone, investors bought more than 345,000 homes nationwide, accounting for roughly one-third of all residential purchases during that period.

In certain regions, the concentration is even higher. Following last year’s wildfires in parts of Los Angeles County, California, real estate figures show that investors are purchasing close to 40 percent of available properties, as many homeowners struggle to afford rebuilding costs.

Academic research has also pointed to long-term community effects. A study by researchers at the University of Colorado Boulder’s Leeds School of Business examined property and neighborhood records in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, and found that institutional investors acquired nearly seven percent of all single-family homes sold there between 2011 and 2021.

According to the researchers, the trend carries broad negative consequences for neighborhoods, from stability to overall quality of life.

“When institutional investors start purchasing at this scale, the effects really start to compound, leading to broader declines in these neighborhoods. As these areas grow and become more concentrated with investor-owned properties, the overall decline becomes even more noticeable,” said Stephen Billings, the study’s lead author.

He added that frequent turnover and absentee ownership alter the fabric of communities. “It’s not surprising that the character of the community changes,” Billings said. “When people are constantly moving in and out, it’s hard to expect anyone to truly invest in the long-term well-being of the neighborhood.”

{Matzav.com}

Jooish News

Jooish News