Latest news with #DanGilbert
Forbes
3 days ago
- Business
- Forbes
How To Succeed - Life Lessons From The Man Who Rebuilt Detroit
Dan Gilbert is one of those rare individuals who has had a huge impact on a large community. I began to understand his philosophy listening to a fascinating interview he gave at the Summit conference in Detroit I attended earlier this month. Detroit had really seen better days when it filed for bankruptcy in 2013. Dan Gilbert, a well-known entrepreneur and billionaire founder of Quicken Loans – now known as Rocket Mortgage — jumped in to help bring the city back. To rebuild Detroit and Cleveland, his development company Bedrock has bought more than 140 buildings, modernized and restored them, and brought in high end retail, offices, hotels, affordable apartments, and luxury condos. Today, Detroit is a model of urban revival. Dan Gilbert has also done more philanthropically to help Detroit than almost anyone else has done to rebuild a single city. In addition to the billions he spent buying and renovating buildings, he has donated $500 million to revitalize the neighborhoods, cleared property tax debt for 20,000 home owners, created startup incubators Detroit Venture partners and Venture 313, helped rebuild the streetcar, brought in two medical research institutions for $439 million, and contributed to the public-private partnership Grand Bargain to save the Detroit Institute of Arts. Dan Gilbert said he isn't only interested in making money. Rocket is a public, for-profit company, but everyone knows their goal is to produce great products and enrich lives. He stressed that Rocket aims to create broad based social impact, not just profit, through a variety of mortgage and financial products and services. One of their many products, Rocket Money, was designed to improve household financial stability. Dan Gilbert believes that some of his buildings may make money in the near term, while others won't be profitable for years, if ever. Many of the buildings were in significant disrepair and required millions and millions of dollars to renovate. He doesn't mind, because restoring these 140-plus buildings to current standards has significantly improved downtown Detroit, contributed massively to bringing the city back to life, and created opportunities for other businesses to join in the city's revitalization and to invest. For some of the buildings, the return on investment may take decades for a financial return, but have already begun contributing massively to the economic transformation of the city and to a renewed sense of civic pride — a non-monetary ROI. Dan Gilbert shared this as one of his philosophies that has proven true time and again. He made the point that you want to work with people you trust. He said an investment opportunity may look attractive, but if it's offered by an untrustworthy person, the long-term risk outweighs the potential short-term gains. Similarly, a great entrepreneur may have a weak idea, but over time, they will refine it and modify it and develop it, so it has the potential to be profitable. This is a similar point. He believes a great founder will pivot if their idea doesn't work, but a bad founder will not be able to recover. He says he always invests in the founder, not the idea. As a hugely successful investor, he has found over many years that the person behind the idea is more important than the idea itself. He invests in the entrepreneur, not the startup, because a mediocre idea with a great founder is more likely to be successful than a great idea with a mediocre founder. The great founder — who has grit and integrity — will adapt, and pivot, and evolve until the idea becomes great. This was really profound coming from Dan Gilbert, as he has personally suffered a stroke and lost his beloved son, Nick, in his twenties to neurofibromatosis (NF). He has spent millions trying to find a cure for NF, funding – along with Henry Ford Health and Michigan State University – a new research institute in Detroit, as well as giving millions to existing institutions working to cure the disease. But this sentence makes you appreciate the significance of being healthy compared to everything else that you may think is important. Dan Gilbert said you won't get outsized returns if you're not willing to take outsized risk. If the risk is thoughtful, and aligned to the goals and the culture of the organization, it's worth taking. Extraordinary outcomes only come from being willing to take big risks. He has done this with Detroit — investing billions in abandoned buildings to rebuild a city he loves. He has done this with Rocket Mortgage — going digital years before others. He has done this with venture capital — investing in startups others were afraid to fund. And he's doing this with the millions he's spending to find a cure for NF. Dan Gilbert said it makes no sense to hold onto your money until you die. It's so much better to see the fruits of your efforts. It's also better for your children to know how you want your money to be spent. This is similar to Bill Perkins' book, Die With Zero: Don't save it. Give it away and have an impact. Dan Gilbert told us, if you chase greatness, the money will come. But if you chase money, you'll never find greatness. This is one of his famous 'isms.' He wrote a book about the truisms he follows, Isms in Action. He believes that success always comes from following the mission, not the money, and that how much money you make should never be the goal. He explained that if you're focused on solving a problem and creating something meaningful, and you refuse to compromise on the really important things — your mission, your principles, your long-term purpose — the money will come. I love that Dan Gilbert made this point, because it's similar to an article I wrote for Forbes, Why You Should Empower Your Employees If You Want To Succeed. He believes — as I think most of the best entrepreneurs do — that when you empower your employees to make decisions, based on the company's core values, the business will be more successful. He stressed that company culture drives behavior, and is the foundation of every decision. He also believes that employees who are valued and are treated well, will have greater job satisfaction and perform at a higher level. He has found that when employees are empowered to solve problems and make decisions, they will respond more quickly to changing environments, they will be more productive, they will have more job satisfaction, and they will stay longer at the company. Dan Gilbert is inspirational, and what he has done to transform Detroit is extraordinary. But his guiding principles should be followed by everyone, to succeed in business and, even more important, to achieve a meaningful life.
Yahoo
12-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Chinese Stocks' Premium Over Hong Kong Peers Drops to 5-Year Low
(Bloomberg) -- The premium that Chinese stocks command over their Hong Kong-traded peers has narrowed to a five-year low, suggesting that some investors may look to snap up onshore stocks that have become cheaper. Shuttered NY College Has Alumni Fighting Over Its Future Trump's Military Parade Has Washington Bracing for Tanks and Weaponry NYC Renters Brace for Price Hikes After Broker-Fee Ban NY Long Island Rail Service Resumes After Grand Central Fire Do World's Fairs Still Matter? Stocks listed on mainland exchanges, known as A-shares, are now trading at a 27% premium to their counterparts across the border, according to the Hang Seng Stock Connect China AH Premium Index. The valuation gap often widened again when the premium dipped to below 30% in previous occasions. The CSI 300 Index, a benchmark for onshore shares, has lagged the Hang Seng China Enterprises Index this year, set for the widest underperformance since 2003. While the HSCEI gauge entered a bull market earlier this week, the rebound on the mainland has been much more tepid as the market lacks policy catalysts to draw fresh money. In the case of some stocks favored by global investors like BYD Co. and Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., A-shares are trading at a rare discount to H-shares, according to calculations by by Bloomberg. New Grads Join Worst Entry-Level Job Market in Years American Mid: Hampton Inn's Good-Enough Formula for World Domination The Spying Scandal Rocking the World of HR Software The SEC Pinned Its Hack on a Few Hapless Day Traders. The Full Story Is Far More Troubling Cavs Owner Dan Gilbert Wants to Donate His Billions—and Walk Again ©2025 Bloomberg L.P. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
11-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
US Mortgage Applications Jump to Refinance or Purchase a Home
(Bloomberg) — US mortgage applications to refinance or purchase a home each jumped last week, even as borrowing costs hovered just below 7%. Trump's Military Parade Has Washington Bracing for Tanks and Weaponry NY Long Island Rail Service Resumes After Grand Central Fire NYC Mayoral Candidates All Agree on Building More Housing. But Where? Senator Calls for Closing Troubled ICE Detention Facility in New Mexico California Pitches Emergency Loans for LA, Local Transit Systems The Mortgage Bankers Association's measure of refinancing climbed 15.6% in the week ended June 6, the first increase in a month and the biggest jump since early April, according to data released Wednesday. MBA's index of home-purchase applications advanced 10.3% to the highest level in two months. The burst of borrowing activity comes as the contract rate on a fixed 30-year mortgage ticked up to 6.93% last week. But purchase and refinancing gauges both remain well below their pre-pandemic levels. Economists and real estate agents have said that a sustained drop in home financing costs is needed to reinvigorate the housing market, which is also hamstrung by high prices. The MBA survey, which has been conducted weekly since 1990, uses responses from mortgage bankers, commercial banks and thrifts. The data cover more than 75% of all retail residential mortgage applications in the US. New Grads Join Worst Entry-Level Job Market in Years The Spying Scandal Rocking the World of HR Software American Mid: Hampton Inn's Good-Enough Formula for World Domination Cavs Owner Dan Gilbert Wants to Donate His Billions—and Walk Again The SEC Pinned Its Hack on a Few Hapless Day Traders. The Full Story Is Far More Troubling ©2025 Bloomberg L.P. By subscribing, you are agreeing to Yahoo's Terms and Privacy Policy
Axios
11-06-2025
- Automotive
- Axios
Michigan's Fortune 500 companies
Michigan was home to 15 of the country's top-grossing companies last year — many of them tied to the auto industry — according to the 2025 Fortune 500 list released this month. Why it matters: Fortune 500 companies boost the state's economy, influence policy priorities and power job growth. Michigan's top-ranked companies, by fiscal year 2024 revenue, are: 18. General Motors (Detroit): $187.4 billion — up 1 spot from last year. 19. Ford (Dearborn): $185 billion — down 2 spots. 103. Dow (Midland): $43 billion — down 4. 141. Penske Automotive Group (Bloomfield Hills): $30.5 billion — up 5. 189. Lear (Southfield): $23.3 billion — down 15. Zoom in: Other top-500 companies in Metro Detroit include Ally Financial (255), BorgWarner (307), DTE Energy (337) and Autoliv (407). The intrigue: Dan Gilbert's Rocket Companies jumped 127 spots but remains outside the Fortune 500 at number 619, with $5.4 billion in revenue. The big picture: Walmart topped the magazine's annual list for the 13th straight year. Amazon, UnitedHealth Group, Apple and CVS Health round out the top five.
Yahoo
11-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Warner Bros. Bonds Cut to Junk by Moody's After Split Plan
(Bloomberg) — Moody's Ratings has downgraded debt issued by units of Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. (WBD), adding another complication to the media giant's discussions with bondholders after it announced plans to split in two. Trump's Military Parade Has Washington Bracing for Tanks and Weaponry NY Long Island Rail Service Resumes After Grand Central Fire NYC Mayoral Candidates All Agree on Building More Housing. But Where? Senator Calls for Closing Troubled ICE Detention Facility in New Mexico California Pitches Emergency Loans for LA, Local Transit Systems The credit rating company has downgraded the backed senior unsecured notes of Discovery Communications and WarnerMedia Holdings to Ba1 from Baa3, meaning the notes no longer qualify as investment grade. It also placed these ratings on review for downgrade. The cut came after Warner Bros. Discovery said it would split into two independent companies, unshackling its fast-growing streaming business from the struggling legacy media channels. Moody's (MCO) rating action followed a similar move earlier this week by S&P Global Ratings, which cut Warner Bros. Discovery's bonds deeper into junk territory. The downgrade reflects Warner Bros. Discovery's 'persistent operating challenges and a change in its financial policies to include secured debt in its capital structure pre and post separation,' wrote Moody's in a June 10 statement. The company plans to refinance more than $14 billion of unsecured notes as part of the breakup, using $17.5 billion of secured bridge financing. That effectively puts new creditors ahead of unsecured noteholders. The buyback plan has forced investors to make some difficult choices, since investors who sell back their notes must agree to give up some safeguards on other bonds they hold. New Grads Join Worst Entry-Level Job Market in Years The Spying Scandal Rocking the World of HR Software American Mid: Hampton Inn's Good-Enough Formula for World Domination Cavs Owner Dan Gilbert Wants to Donate His Billions—and Walk Again The SEC Pinned Its Hack on a Few Hapless Day Traders. The Full Story Is Far More Troubling ©2025 Bloomberg L.P. By subscribing, you are agreeing to Yahoo's Terms and Privacy Policy
