The Gilbert Family Foundation is a philanthropic organization that primarily invests in projects intended to benefit the population and government of Detroit, Michigan. It also funds research in medical fields such as gene therapy, vision restoration, and curing neurofibromatosis, a genetic disorder that causes tumors to grow on nerve pathways throughout the human body. ¹²

The foundation was created by Dan Gilbert, an American billionaire investor and businessman, and his wife Jennifer. Gilbert is the founder of Quicken Loans, now called Rocket Companies, which is the largest home mortgage lending firm in the United States. He also sits on the board of the Children’s Tumor Foundation. As of August 2020, Gilbert had a net worth of more than $33 billion. ³⁴

Gilbert has made significant investments in the city of Detroit through the Gilbert Family Foundation as well as other philanthropic entities. In addition to purchasing real estate in Detroit, the foundation has paid Detroit residents’ unpaid property taxes, funded a rail transit line, and made other contributions intended to support the city, which declared bankruptcy in 2013. ⁵⁶

Founders

Dan Gilbert received his bachelor’s degree from Michigan State University and his law degree from Wayne State University in Detroit. He founded the lending company Rock Financial in 1985, and the online mortgage lender Rockloans.com in 1986. In 1999, the software firm Intuit purchased Rock Financial for $370 million and renamed the company Quicken Loans, but Gilbert bought it back several years later. In August 2010, Gilbert relocated the company to downtown Detroit. Around that time, he started buying real estate in the city through Rock Ventures, his investment company. ⁷

Jennifer Gilbert is an interior designer by profession. She is the founder of a design firm based out of Detroit and a home furnishing service firm. Gilbert also holds board positions at several Detroit art organizations. She received her bachelor’s degree in interior design from Michigan State University. ⁸

Detroit Investments

The Gilbert Family Foundation has donated to a wide variety of local organizations. As of 2018, these included the Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan, a left-of-center nonprofit, as well as universities and hospitals in Michigan and other states.

In early 2021, Dan Gilbert announced that he planned to invest $500 million into the city over the next decade. $350 million will come from the Gilbert Family Foundation, and $150 million will come from the Rocket Community Fund, the philanthropic organization affiliated with his business. Gilbert is setting aside $15 million to cover unpaid property taxes for approximately 20,000 households. ⁹

In June 2021, Michigan State University announced that Gilbert would fund a multi-million-dollar software developer academy as part of the university’s partnership with tech giant Apple. The Gilbert Family Foundation would provide a portion of the funding, with the rest coming from Gilbert’s corporate entities. University officials did not disclose the amount of the grant. ¹⁰

Financials

As of 2019, the Gilbert Family Foundation held more than $125 million in total assets. Executive director Joyce Keller was paid an annual salary of just over $129,000, while scientific officer Yoori Kim was paid approximately $84,000 per year. The foundation spent more than $500,000 on legal services. ¹¹

1.     Gilbert Family Foundation. Accessed August 15, 2021.

   Home

2.        “What is NF?” Gilbert Family Foundation. Accessed August 15, 2021.

   What Is NF?

3. Dan Gilbert. Bloomberg. Accessed August 15, 2021. https://www.bloomberg.com/billionaires/profiles/daniel-gilbert/
4.        “About Dan & Jennifer Gilbert.” Gilbert Family Foundation. Accessed August 15, 2021.

   Our Founders

5.             Dan Gilbert. Bloomberg. Accessed August 15, 2021. https://www.bloomberg.com/billionaires/profiles/daniel-gilbert/
6.        Michael Kavate. “A Half-Billion from Detroit’s ‘Shadow Mayor’ Latest Sign of Donors’ Power in Cities.” Inside Philanthropy. March 30, 2021. Accessed August 15, 2021.https://www.insidephilanthropy.com/home/2021/3/30/alf-a-billion-from-detroits-shadow-mayor-latest-sign-of-donors-power-in-cities
7.             Dan Gilbert. Bloomberg. Accessed August 15, 2021. https://www.bloomberg.com/billionaires/profiles/daniel-gilbert/
8.             “About Dan & Jennifer Gilbert.” Gilbert Family Foundation. Accessed August 15, 2021. https://www.gilbertfamilyfoundation.org/our-founders/
9.        Michael Kavate. “A Half-Billion from Detroit’s ‘Shadow Mayor’ Latest Sign of Donors’ Power in Cities.” Inside Philanthropy. March 30, 2021. Accessed August 15, 2021. https://www.insidephilanthropy.com/home/2021/3/30/alf-a-billion-from-detroits-shadow-mayor-latest-sign-of-donors-power-in-cities
10. Candice Williams. “Rock companies to provide multi-million grant, mentor support to Apple Developer Academy.” Detroit News. June 17, 2021. Accessed August 15, 2021. https://www.detroitnews.com/story/business/2021/06/17/rock-family-companies-provide-multi-million-grant-mentor-support-apple-developer-academy/7708699002/
11. Gilbert Family Foundation, Return of a Private Foundation (Form 990-PF), 2019