Housing

Habitat for Humanity

Habitat for Humanity was founded in Americus, Georgia, by Linda and Millard Fuller. The company operates a nonprofit, international, non-governmental organization that allows people to become homeowners by building newly constructed homes and charging only for the materials. All work is donated.

Habitat for Humanity operates in all 50 US states and in 70 countries. The company has helped more than 29 million people construct, preserve, or rehabilitate their homes.

Former President Jimmy Carter and his wife Rosalynn are two of the best-known faces of Habitat for Humanity. They have worked on numerous projects since 1984.

The company has received criticism for not training its volunteers sufficiently, which has led to serious injury and even death of some volunteers.

Habitat for Humanity also operates ReStores, which are retail outlets selling new and used building materials donated by others, as well as furniture. Proceeds from ReStores are used to construct housing within the community.

Due to the coronavirus crisis in the spring of 2020, most ReStores and building stopped for a period of time. As of late May 2020, most construction is continuing and ReStores have announced their re-opening dates, which vary around the country.

The first new home delivered since the coronavirus crisis was on May 22, 2020, to Angela Torres in Tacoma, Washington.

The company maintains a corporate office in Americus, Georgia.

Airbnb Corporate Office

Airbnb was founded in 2008 by roommates Brian Chesky and Joe Gebbia. When the pair found that they were having trouble paying the rent on their expensive San Francisco apartment, they converted the living room into a “guest room” with three beds. They rented this space out to short term renters and offered a homemade breakfast as well.

Airbnb offers vacation rentals from private individuals who rent out rooms, entire houses, or guest houses. Both hosts and guests post pictures and offer feedback afterwards. This creative concept has been praised by many, however, it has seen a few problems, including a recent (May 2016) lawsuit brought about by a guest who says they were denied a reservation based on their race. A class action lawsuit was opened against Airbnb due to discrimation based on race in July 2017.

Airbnb lost nearly half of its value due to the coronavirus, which is also putting a damper on the expected opening of their IPO.

During the COVID-19 pandemic in earlly 2020, Airbnb has begun pushing their virtual “home classes”, where property owners can not only highlight their rentals for later in the year, but they also feature some type of class, such as Korean cooking, yoga, or learning to play guitar.

The company now lists rentals in more than 191 countries, 34,000 cities, and boasts more than 6 million guests.

Airbnb maintains a corporate office in San Francisco, California.

Brookdale Senior Living Corporate Office

Brookdale Senior Living was founded in 1978.

The company operates independent and assisted living centers as well as retirement communities. In all, Brookdale Senior Living has 680 facilities with 67,000 bedroom units in 36 states.

The company’s facilities offer services to residents, including housekeeping, meals, 24-hour emergency response, transportation, and recreational activities.

Brookdale Senior Living trades publicly on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol BKD, is #750 in the Fortune 1000, and had $3.03 billion in revenue in 2020.

In 2013, a Brookdale facility in Bakersfield, California, refused to give CPR to a resident. It was later disclosed that Brookdale cited a policy to reporters that allegedly prohibited staff members from performing CPR on residents of its independent living facilities; however, the spokesman did not provide copies of the policy to reporters.

Brookdale later reversed its public position, saying that the staff member had misinterpreted the CPR policy. Police closed the Glenwood investigation without filing any criminal charges. The Bayless family said it had no intention of suing Brookdale over Lorraine’s death.

In 2018, the company rejected a $9 per share buyout offer from an undisclosed party.

In October 2022, a spokesperson for Brookdale stated that it would consider selling the business for the right price.

Brookdale Senior Living maintains a corporate office in Brentwood, Tennessee.

Fannie Mae Corporate Office

The Federal National Mortgage Association, known as Fannie Mae, was created in 1938 as part of FDR’s New Deal.

In 1954, an amendment was passed that allowed Fannie Mae stock to be purchased by private investors.

In 1968, the company was completely privatized in order to remove its debt from the federal budget.

In 1981, the company issued its first Mortgage Backed Security or MBS.

In 1999, the company began to offer mortgages to low and moderate income families due to political pressure from President Clinton.

In 2003, the subprime mortgage crisis began and the company was thrown into turmoil.

In 2008, the company was placed under control of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA).

In 2010, the company was removed from the NYSE.

Today, Fannie Mae is the largest player in the US secondary mortgage market.