Japanese Homebuilder Builds U.S. Momentum With Acquisition Of Houston Company

A U.S. subsidiary of Japanese homebuilder Sekisui House has purchased Houston-based homebuilder Chesmar Group for $514M, bringing the company a step closer to its goal of building 10,000 homes annually outside Japan by 2025.

Sekisui House US Holdings purchased Chesmar, which develops single-family houses throughout Texas, along with its mortgage and title companies, CLM Mortgage and N Title. Chesmar's net sales were $810M last year, per Sekisui House. It owns 6,000 lots and closed just over 2,000 houses in 2021.

Sekisui House is set to acquire interest in Chesmar by July 1, and acquire CLM Mortgage and N Title by the end of the year.

"We are excited to partner with Chesmar to capitalize on compelling opportunities in the Texas market," said Rick Robideau, CEO of SH Residential Holdings, a Sekisui House subsidiary, in a release.

"Chesmar Homes has been the adventure of my life," Chesmar CEO Don Klein said. "We look forward to being part of Sekisui House's collection of companies and supporting its goal of creating over 10,000 happy customers annually in its international markets."

Sekisui House is on a mission to grow its assets outside its home country. The company said the Chesmar acquisition will give it capital and technology to accelerate that growth.

"The addition of Chesmar to the Sekisui House family enables us to gain immediate scale in several leading markets in the attractive Texas region," Robideau said. "We believe that we can provide the capital and efficiencies to help Chesmar grow and enhance its competitive position while continuing to build dream homes for Texas families."

Sekisui House was founded in 1960 and is based in Osaka, Japan. It has sold 2.5 million houses to date globally and is listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange and the Nagoya Stock Exchange.

Chesmar's Houston houses start at just under $300K and are largely in suburbs around the city like in Cypress, Montgomery and Katy.