Amazon's First Forays Into Homebuilding Are Worth Watching

"Amazon (AMZN) is making its foray into residential real estate," and the housing industry should fear it's new competitor, according to an article by Melody Hahm.

"Last week, the Alexa Fund, which invests in companies harnessing voice technology, participated in a $6.7 million round of funding to back Plant Prefab, a Southern California-based smart home builder," explains Hahm to follow up on news first reported by Eugene Kim.

According to Kim, Plant prefab builds prefabricated, custom single- and multifamily homes, and the investment follows "Amazon's launch of more than a dozen new smart home devices powered by Alexa." All in all, Kim characterizes the move as a step toward Amazon owning the smart home space.

Hahm clearly thinks Amazon has a strong foothold that could give way to a much larger footprint in the industry. "There’s an obvious synergy between the future of home building and Amazon’s vision for the world," writes Hahm.