B I R M I N G H A M

 

42 | JULY 8 • 2021 

W

hen Edward 
Rose, founder 
of national real 
estate development com-
pany Edward Rose & Sons, 
immigrated to the United 
States in 1907 to live on a 
farm with his Uncle Streir, 
the young boy had virtually 
nothing to his name. Like so 
many immigrants who also 
left Poland for a better life 
in America, he had to some-
how build a career from the 
ground up.
Now, Edward Rose & Sons 
is celebrating 100 years in 
business thanks to a timeless 
success story that mirrors 
those of many Jewish immi-
grants who relocated to the 
Detroit area.
It began during World War 
I, when Rose was enticed by 
Henry Ford’s offer encour-
aging workers to move to 
Detroit and take on jobs 
in the city’s booming auto 
industry. The wages promised 
were $5 per day, which at the 
time was a handsome sum. 
Though working for Ford 
didn’t ultimately come to fru-
ition for the then-21-year-old 
Rose, he had other ambitions 
to pursue.
After trying out a tem-
porary building business 
with his brother, Louis Rose, 
Edward decided to launch 

his own company. He 
partnered with a friend, 
Max Rosenfeld, to invest 
$5,000 saved from a win-
dow-washing company 
into what would become 
Edward Rose & Sons 
(Rose later bought out 
Rosenfeld). By 1921, the 
new building company 
was open for business.
“We’ve been in continu-
ous operation since 1921,” 
explains Warren Rose, grand-
son of Edward Rose and 
current CEO of Edward Rose 
& Sons. 
“My grandfather founded 
the company at that time as a 
single-family home builder.” 
Now, Edward Rose & Sons 
has significantly expanded, 
branching into luxury apart-
ments, multi-family units and 
even a new senior living arm.

GIVING VALUE
Warren Rose attributes the 
company’s success to his 
grandfather’s unwavering 
commitment to getting 
the “most house for your 
money.” 
“That was his inspiration,” 
Rose explains. “He wanted to 
give great value to the people 
who purchase homes.”
For Edward Rose, a simple 
man who came from humble 
beginnings and didn’t need 

the luxuries in life, his goal 
was for customers to buy 
homes that would be worth 
every dollar. This was espe-
cially important during the 
historic economic collapse of 
the Great Depression, which 
significantly impacted the 
housing industry.
Surviving the Great 
Depression, Warren Rose 
says, was one of his grandfa-
ther’s — and the company’s 
— biggest accomplishments. 
“My grandfather was a very 
astute businessman and 
was able to get through that 
economic downturn in one 
piece,” he explains. While 
there wasn’t a lot of activity 
during this time, Edward 

Rose and the company main-
tained their solidarity.
The Rose family then 
opened a mortgage busi-
ness, Advance Mortgage 
Corporation, which was 
later sold to Citicorp (now 
Citigroup) in 1970. The 
mortgage business, Warren 
Rose describes, was the com-
pany’s second key milestone.

SENIOR LIVING
Their third major milestone 
is the new Rose Senior 
Living business, which works 
exclusively with the senior 
community.
“It’s hard to believe we’re 
now in our 100th year,” Rose 
says. “I think the entire fam-
ily takes great pride in the 
legacy that was started by 
Edward and all that he did.” 
The business, which is kept 
going strong by several gen-
erations of the Rose family, 
sees many members involved 
in its management.
Though times have 

Edward Rose & Sons celebrates 
100 years in business.

Building Upon 
Great Success

ASHLEY ZLATOPOLSKY CONTRIBUTING WRITER

BUSINESS SPOTlight

brought to you in partnership with 

Edward Rose’s 
mission was to 
provide value to 
homeowners.

The founder of 
the business