Homebuilders Working on Massive Program to Build Up to 1 Million “Trump Homes” to Boost Affordability
3rd February 2026
Last October, Dubai-based billionaire and Emaar Properties founder Mohammed Alabbar unveiled an audacious $400 billion proposal to help solve America’s worsening housing shortage by building millions of housing units, describing it as both a humanitarian and economic opportunity that could “reshape the U.S. market” and create up to 20 million jobs.
According to Alabbar, the United States is experiencing a significant housing-supply shortfall, which has led to a crushing lack of affordable housing. Analysts estimate a gap of about 4.7 million to nearly 5 million housing units currently exists in the US. This shortage is the result of many years of underconstruction, soaring costs, regulatory and labor constraints. The effects are broad: higher home and rent prices, fewer first-time buyers, and mobility barriers for workers. In short: a weak supply side has become a drag on affordability, economic growth and inflation control. In response, Alabbar – who now runs the largest real estate developer in the UAE – proposed a $400 billion “fix” at the Reuters NEXT Gulf Summit in Abu Dhabi, capital which he claimed could be raised in as little as one week if the right partners are assembled.
But while Alabbar’s proposal was unlikely to be taken seriously – as it benefits his company as much as it does US homebuyers – the logic behind it is sound – build much more housing – and has seemingly impressed the Trump admin.
It does explains why, as Bloomberg reports, US homebuilders are working on a plan for a massive program to develop up to a million “Trump Homes” that would address the US affordability crisis while allowing private capital to deploy many billions of dollars.