For the past 165 years, Hubbell Realty Company has made community philanthropy and involvement a top priority alongside the longstanding real estate industry. Our founder, F.M. Hubbell, recognized the needs of a growing city and worked tirelessly to grow Des Moines. To facilitate transportation, he helped to establish Des Moines’ first street railway; when it became clear that private wells would not be able to serve the city’s growing population, he helped to found what is now known as Des Moines Water Works; and leading a group of investors, he incorporated Equitable Life Insurance, the first life insurance company west of the Mississippi!

In addition to his business ventures that helped to form Des Moines’ foundation, F.M. Hubbell also contributed to the city’s growth through generous donations to organizations such as Drake University, the YMCA and YWCA, Methodist Hospital, the Des Moines Children’s Home, the Craftsmen School, and Des Moines’ Home for the Aged. His fundraising efforts brought about the construction of Fort Des Moines, an 11,000 seat civic auditorium called the Coliseum, and a diagonal highway reaching from downtown to the northeast city limits—now known as Hubbell Avenue.

Hubbell Realty began its work in “extreme builds” in 2006, when the company brought together more than 4,000 volunteers and 200 partner companies as part of ABC’s “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” to build a home for a Tama County, Iowa, family who had lost their home to a fire. Together, the entire home was completed in just 93 hours. 

In 2009, Hubbell continued the tradition by partnering with Anawim Housing, which provides safe and affordable housing for low-income families, to build 9 townhomes in 9 days at the corner of 21st Street and Forest Avenue in Des Moines. The entire construction of the homes, valued at more than $1.5 million, was donated, from the trusses, drywall, and paint down to the very last nail. 

In 2013, Hubbell completed Cabins for Campers 24/7. The new, 7,500 square foot cabins were built at Easterseals Iowa’s Camp Sunnyside in just seven days. More than 2,000 trade partners, volunteers, and Hubbell associates came together on this $2.4 million project to tear down and rebuild the cabins, which continue to serve the community today.

In 2017, Hubbell dove head first in to tearing down and rebuilding the Central Iowa Ronald McDonald House in downtown Des Moines near Blank Children's Hospital. The former house was outdated, outgrown and families utilizing Blank's NICU, PICU and cancer treatment units needed a place to go. The 'Keeping More Families Close' build took 11 days, 100+ trade partners and just over $3 million to build. Now, the house has 18 rooms, 20 bathrooms, theater room, multiple family kitchens, a playground donated by Variety - The Children's Charity, and brand new staff offices. 

In 2021, Hubbell is proud to announce we will be returning to Easterseals to construct a daycare facility for youth campers. To visit how you can be involved in this year's fundraiser and to follow along with our news, visit hubbellextreme.com

Extreme... continued! 
When we’re not engaged in Hubbell Extreme Builds, Hubbell also organizes an annual Hubbell Extreme Charity Golf Classic, which raises money for specially selected charities each year. Last year, the event raised $52,000 for Polk County Housing Trust Fund, Community Youth Concepts and Chrysalis Foundation! This year's event will be Thursday, August 27th at Woodland Hills Golf Course and will benefit Easterseals Iowa! To learn more visit hubbellextreme.com at the link above!

We look forward to sharing our extremely fun details with you as we approach both the 2020 Hubbell Extreme Charity Golf Classic and the 2021 Extreme Build!