American Home Builders Are Being Taken Over by Japanese Firms in Billion-Dollar Deals—Here’s Why
Japanese homebuilders are on a buying spree for American firms, a trend that is accelerating as the US faces a 4.03 million housing shortage.
As of early 2026, three Japanese firms have announced agreements to collect real estate, including Sumitomo Forestry Co.’s plan. Ltd. to acquire Tri-Pointe Homes Inc. for a $4.5 billion deal.
The housing shortage in the US is a significant opportunity for Japanese companies, which are faced with a shrinking population that is aging due to their home buying age.
“Here in the country, we have a housing shortage in millions of homes while in Japan these builders would have a hard time finding buyers,” said Joel Berner, chief economist at Realtor.com®.
“Building homes in America is a mature business opportunity compared to doing it in other countries.”
But, it’s more than demographics that drive adoption. Many of these Japanese names are placed with support and resources that strengthen their new US companies.
Japanese firms target regional housebuilders
In addition to Sumitomo’s plan to acquire Tri-Pointe, the company has also picked up half a dozen regional manufacturers in recent years.
In another deal, Stanley Martin Homes, a US homebuilder acquired by Daiwa House in 2017, bought North Carolina-based United Homes Group in a $221 million deal.
Then, the company affiliated with Iida Group Holdings Co. Ltd. announced that it would buy Wright Homes of Utah.
In a statement, Iida Group spoke highly of Wright Homes, particularly its regional focus.
“The northern portion of Utah Lake in Utah, where WH Group primarily operates, is one of the areas in the state where the demand for housing is strongest as it is close to the heart of major highways that connect Utah’s major cities, providing ease of commuting,” the statement read.
“Additionally, Utah, with a high GDP growth rate and a much lower unemployment rate than the national average, is expected to see strong housing demand continue, driven by continued migration from other US states.”
In the process of its acquisition, Sumitomo has become the fifth largest US homebuilder. It also overtook Sekisui House, which moved up the list of largest homebuilders in 2024 when it acquired MDC Holdings, also known as Richmond American Homes, in a $5 billion deal.
The chief executive of Sekisui House Yoshihiro Nakai spoke highly of that strategy at the time, arguing that the company could become “a one-of-a-kind company in the US by combining Japanese and US technology and, above all, sharing our passion for providing quality housing.”
American home builders are falling in price
Homebuilders cited weak US housing market fundamentals to drive their purchases.
“The Company’s Group has considered the expansion of business in overseas markets as one of the developments
strategies as the domestic housing market is expected to reach a mature stage from the growth stage compared to the declining birth rate and the aging of the population,” Iida Group said in its statement.
California fund manager Hennessy Funds has also decided that the US housing market offers a profitable path. It selected Sekisui, Sumitomo, and Daiwa in particular with “significant” growth potential. These companies are already established to produce home building products that can partner with American builders.
The US construction industry itself is undergoing consolidation, with some major homebuilders growing in market share. Harvard University researchers estimate that the number of home builders has decreased by 22% from 2002 to 2017. That meant the loss of nearly 19,000 firms.
And now, the top 100 home builders make up half of all sales from two to three decades ago, Harvard found.
Given those circumstances, Hennessy said the acquisition is smart for Japanese companies. They can bring engineering skills, deep pockets, and manufacturing capabilities to strengthen US firms. Their integrated structures mean that procurement of raw materials and financing is easy for them.
The trend is even stronger amid the economic turmoil of the past few years. Because of rising capital costs, which affect smaller builders more than large ones, more acquisitions are likely, Berner said.
“A potential target would be small regional builders who are well-established and have taken a key position: those who are ready to build and are waiting for investment,” said Berner.
