For too long, millions of Americans have been shut out of homeownership, a pillar of the American Dream. The Biden administration allowed the housing affordability crisis to spiral out of control, exacerbated by soaring interest rates, corporate ownership of homes, and counterproductive DEI-focused housing policies.
Homeownership has been pushed further and further out of reach for young home buyers. The numbers tell the story. Last year, there were more home buyers over the age of 70 in the U.S. than under the age of 35, according to data from the National Association of Realtors. That leaves families who can’t buy trapped in cycles of rent – unable to build equity, invest in their communities, or pass assets down to their children.
The Trump administration has launched a blitz of housing reforms, spearheaded by Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte, seeking to revitalize the American Dream. From pressing for interest rate cuts and shaking up credit checks for mortgage applicants to releasing Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae from government receivership, the administration has made streamlining home buying and selling a core focus.
Now, a private sector investment could help support the administration’s efforts, reducing friction in the homebuying process, cutting costs, and streamlining the industry. Rocket Companies, the largest mortgage lender in the country, has agreed to buy Mr. Cooper Group, the largest mortgage servicer, in a $9.4 billion transaction that could cut red tape and make homeownership more accessible.
Let’s be clear: the current housing system is bloated. There are too many middlemen, too much paperwork, and too many junk fees. Every layer of waste is a barrier between a family and their first home. Rocket and Mr. Cooper are saying enough is enough. By merging, they’re cutting duplication, cutting overhead, and cutting red tape.
The companies expect to generate hundreds of millions of dollars in annual savings from eliminating waste. Imagine what that means when passed on to borrowers: lower closing costs, smaller fees, and more affordable mortgages. For a first-generation Latino family scraping together every penny for a down payment, that can be the difference between getting the keys or getting shut out.
Ask anyone who’s tried to buy a home: the process is a nightmare. Mountains of paperwork, endless approvals, confusing rules. For minority families – many of them first-time buyers with no family experience navigating the system – it can be overwhelming. Too often, they simply give up.
Rocket’s technology and Mr. Cooper’s servicing scale could slash that friction. That means faster approvals, clearer communication, integrated services for lending, title, and closing – all under one roof. The process becomes something it should have always been: simple, transparent, and consumer-friendly. When the path is clear, more families walk it.
This is what the Trump housing agenda and FHFA Director Bill Pulte have been calling for: less bureaucracy, more efficiency, and a system that works for the people, not the regulators. The merger shows how private-sector innovation – not more government programs – can deliver results.
Pulte has long argued that the housing industry needs to be re-engineered for the people: streamlined, cost-effective, and focused on consumers. This deal proves his point. It’s about making the system work for everyday Americans.
Horace Cooper is a senior fellow with the National Center for Public Policy Research, chairman of the Project 21 National Advisory Board and a legal commentator. He frequently appears on Fox News and is the author of How Trump is Making Black America Great Again: The Untold Story of Black Advancement in the Era of Trump.