Glenn Kelman, the CEO of Redfin (NASDAQ: RDFN), has a message for President-elect Donald Trump: Start powering the push for new home construction.
Neither Kelman nor Redfin publicly endorsed Trump’s campaign. But in a blog posting on the Redfin website titled “Way-Too-Early Take: What Trump’s Re-Election Could Mean for Housing,” he observed that Trump’s victory has already sparked greater interest among prospective homebuyers.
“Donald Trump’s re-election seems to have had immediate consequences for housing in America,” he wrote. “Demand from homebuyers requesting service through Redfin’s site, which was already stronger since the Federal Reserve’s September 18 rate cut, was about 25% higher this weekend than the same weekend last year, the largest year-on-year gain since the downturn began in 2022. Some buyers are undoubtedly enthusiastic about a Trump economy; others may have been waiting to make major decisions until after the election.”
Kelman credited Trump’s return to the White House to younger Americans who were unhappy with the current housing market – and he added Trump need to repay this electorate support.
“The young voters who, after years living in their parents’ basement, swung right in this election, will expect President Trump to act as America’s real estate developer in chief, and build the housing that they need,” Kelman wrote. “He can do this by setting aside well-meaning regulations on home-building that limit construction and make housing less affordable: local comment periods, traffic studies, parking requirements, environmental reviews in already well-settled areas, and limits on apartment buildings in neighborhoods of single-family homes. These rules are set by state and local governments, but the federal government could create a strong incentive for states to adopt simplified and consistent housing regulations, just as it does with the drinking age.”
Kelman pointed to data that placed the nation’s housing shortage at being between 2 million and 5 million homes. But he insisted the incoming president can address this shortfall.
“Many of America’s problems are hard to solve, but this one isn’t, especially for a president who loves construction,” he continued.
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