Malibu outraged after billionaire foreigner brothers buy up SIXTEEN burned-out lots they plan to combine into mega-mansions

California locals are terrified that a pair of New Zealand billionaire brothers who snapped up land after the devastating LA fires will turn beachfront lots into mega-mansions.

The January 2025 blaze was the most destructive fire in Los Angeles history and burned down more than 6,800 homes and buildings across Southern California.

Malibu alone saw roughly 720 properties turn to rubble in the infernos, and one year later, residents of the once-luxurious celebrity enclave claim they are struggling to compete with developers to rebuild. 

Toy tycoons Nick and Mat Mowbray purchased 16 wildfire-burned plots in Malibu using their tech company, which is investing in AI-designed mass-produced homes manufactured in China, according to KABC.

The New Zealand-based brothers are the founders of global toy empire Zuru, which pumps out some of the world’s most popular toys – including Robo Fish, Bunch O Balloons and Mini Brands – and has since expanded into robotics, construction and household products. 

The brothers, who reportedly plan to manufacture cut-price factory-built houses on the lots, want the homes to be available to customers within three years.

Marcel Fontijn, the director of operations at the Mowbray’s company Zuru Tech, told the local news station: ‘What’s unique with our system, it’s a fire-safe system. Walls are made out of AAC, which is a very lightweight concrete that has high insulated values, and the ceiling, the roofs are made of concrete.’

But Malibu City Councilman Steve Uhring told KABC he is concerned the brothers will combine the lots to build mega-mansions, making them unaffordable for residents who lost their homes. 

‘It’s gotta be a community that has a group of homeowners who live here, who are invested in the community, who participate in what goes on in the community, and that’s what will make us a good city again,’ Uhring said. 

‘I think as we get further down the line, everybody’s gonna realize the boys from New Zealand are billionaires, they’re in it to make money. 

‘I think whether this plan they got right now is the one that’s gonna make them money, whether there will be a revised plan down the road, my crystal ball’s not good enough to tell you how that’s going to work out.’

Fontijn insisted the brothers genuinely want to help rebuild Malibu and the luxury prefabricated houses will be priced based on the real estate market when they are listed.

‘Our attention is not on stealing their land or commercializing Malibu. We truly want to return Malibu to what it can be, hopefully a better version of its past self,’ he said. 

‘Our plan was to build one home that was used by the Mowbrays, but after we bought the first lot, we had many public inquiries if we were interested in buying additional lots. 

‘We don’t want to go through a California Coastal Commission to build very large mansions. We want to truly rebuild what was here before.’ 

Rebuilding appears to be slow in Malibu, where only 22 building permits have been issued since the fires. 

Meanwhile, more than 1,300 permits have been issued in the city of Los Angeles in Pacific Palisades. 

Malibu locals fear that at the current pace, rebuilding may take more than a decade and have started putting their properties up for sale.

In October, experts warned that ‘supply is exceeding demand’ and lots are being listed at discounted rates of 20 to 60 percent, according to the LA Times.

At the time, around 75 lots had sold in Malibu since the deadly blaze, but sales were slowing down and 47 percent of the 160 remaining listed lots had dropped in price. 

The Daily Mail has reached out to Zuru and the Mowbrays’ representative for comment.