Ex‑Goldman Partner’s Pretium Issues a Whopping US $1 Billion in Homebuilder Loans as Housing Recovery Gathers Momentum

10 July 2025

Over the past six months Pretium, the New York–based real estate investment firm founded by former Goldman Sachs partner Don Mullen, has quietly deployed over US $1 billion in loans to U.S. homebuilders, signaling a growing revival in residential construction finance and reflecting a broader shift in the housing market. The milestone, disclosed in a July 10 release via BNN Bloomberg, marks a pivotal moment for the sector as traditional banks once the backbone of mortgage origination continue to pull back from construction lending, leaving room for alternative capital sources.

Pretium, renowned for its strategic bets on residential real estate, has built an ecosystem that spans homeownership, rental development, and private credit infrastructure. With over US $55 billion in assets under management, the firm is no stranger to large-scale funding initiatives. However, this recent wave of loan issuance has particular significance. It comes at a time when regional banks have tightened lending standards and developers are keen to tap fresh capital to meet demand in underserved housing segments across the country.

The loans structured primarily for single-family homebuilders cover a variety of financing models, including land acquisition, vertical construction of single-family-for-sale and build-to-rent communities, and infrastructure funding. While Pretium has long partnered with institutions through equity commitments, the firm’s aggressive deployment of credit marks an evolution into direct financing an area typically dominated by traditional commercial lenders.

Banks’ retreat from construction finance has created a notable gap. Since the 2008 financial crisis, and intensified by the pandemic, capital requirements and risk appetites have made large-scale housing projects less attractive to mainstream lenders. This vacuum has provided a compelling opportunity for asset managers like Pretium that possess both ample liquidity and a deep understanding of housing analytics. By leveraging proprietary data and a nimble operational platform, Pretium can underwrite and price credit with greater speed and precision.

For homebuilders across key U.S. markets, this influx of capital offers a lifeline. Many smaller and mid‑sized firms have struggled to secure project financing amid the dual pressures of rising material costs and stricter lending criteria. Pretium’s loans not only support ongoing projects but also enable builders to bid aggressively for land and manage cash flow more effectively, with downstream effects on housing affordability and inventory.

Analysts project that this momentum could continue if structural conditions persist tight inventory, robust demand from first-time buyers, and ongoing low interest rates despite recent Federal Reserve hikes. Given Pretium’s ambition to originate up to US $5 billion in homebuilder loans as announced in January for a dedicated finance vehicle today’s milestone may merely foreshadow an even more substantial expansion in the sector.

Still, deploying large amounts of capital into construction involves risks. Rising interest rates, labor shortages, or renewed supply chain disruptions could dampen building activity or inflate development costs. Yet Pretium’s playbook appears calibrated to manage these dynamics, combining data-driven underwriting with diversified loan structures and operational oversight.

This financing strategy also dovetails with Pretium’s broader agenda in the residential market. Not only has the company been active in acquiring build-to-rent properties owning tens of thousands of homes nationwide, it has also layered in credit and data expertise through its subsidiaries such as Anchor Loans. Offering financing to smaller homebuilders strengthens Pretium’s vertical integration and positions the firm as a one-stop destination for residential real estate capital and services.

In many ways Pretium is emblematic of a new era in housing finance, one in which asset managers, private credit funds, and alternative lenders step into roles once dominated by banks. The consequences of this shift are profound: it offers agile funding to fill market gaps, but it also raises questions around loan pricing, servicing standards, and the risk management practices of non-bank lenders.

Still, for now Pretium’s landmark issuance offers a vote of confidence in the housing sector’s near-term prospects. If the firm continues on track toward its US $5 billion financing target, its influence on housing supply, development trends, and credit innovation could be both transformative and controversial.

As the company positions itself at the intersection of lending and real estate investment, watch for how regulators, borrower relationships, and housing affordability outcomes evolve in tandem. Pretium’s billion-dollar commitment today may not only define its own trajectory, it could also reshape the landscape of residential lending in America.