Berkshire Hathaway paid $6.8 billion for the homebuilder Taylor Morrison, and the deal closed on July 24. It is the first big use of the cash pile that Greg Abel inherited. That pile was close to $400 billion at the end of the first quarter. It now stands at $365 billion, still well above the norm.
Taylor Morrison will sit inside Clayton Properties Group, Berkshire’s existing site-built construction business. Together the two builders delivered 23,000 closings in 2025 across 21 states. Folding another national builder into the group puts more fixed costs to work, which can lift margins across the whole business.
Berkshire has been preparing for a housing rebound since the market peaked in 2023, when it bought into D.R. Horton, NVR and Lennar. It has traded those stocks since. As of the second quarter of 2026 it holds small positions in all three, including a renewed stake of only 3,564 shares in D.R. Horton.
JPMorgan joins in
JPMorgan Chase has also put money into housing, with a $750 billion commitment. Two of the biggest balance sheets in the country are now pointed at the sector.
A market stuck on rates
Housing has been under pressure since the Federal Reserve raised interest rates between 2022 and 2023. The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate is 6.65%. That is not much lower than recent averages, though it is not high by historical standards. Sales have largely stalled over the past three years, and the rate outlook offers little relief: the Fed is expected to raise rates again because inflation remains stubbornly high.
There are some signs of life. The real value of homes fell in June as inflation outpaced price gains, and home sales rose 4.5% from a year earlier.
