UpNest's platform allows people to compare
agents and select the one that's best for their situation;
acquisition advances Realtor.com®'s seller
strategy
SANTA
CLARA, Calif., June 8, 2022
/PRNewswire/ -- Move, Inc., the operator of
Realtor.com®, one of the most visited real estate sites
in the U.S., announced today it has acquired San Mateo, Calif.-based UpNest. UpNest
operates a marketplace that connects home sellers with highly
qualified local agents who compete for their business. Move, Inc.
is a subsidiary of News Corp.
We're expanding choices for sellers,
buyers, agents and brokers who trust Realtor.com to help bring them
home.
More than 5 million homes are sold each year, according to
2018-2022 data from the National Association of
Realtors®, and 9 out of 10 sellers use an agent to
assist them in the transaction (NAR 2021 Profile of Home Buyers and
Sellers).
Realtor.com® already connects many of these home
sellers with agents who can help them through the ReadyConnect
Concierge℠ referral network. The UpNest acquisition will help
Realtor.com® further expand its services and support for
home sellers and the agents and brokers who can help them
succeed.
"Our open marketplace approach is all about empowering people
with choices. While some of our competitors try to funnel buyers,
sellers and real estate professionals into a specific set of
services in a closed system, Realtor.com helps homeowners choose
how they want to find and connect with an agent, and agents and
brokers can decide which methods work best for them," said
Realtor.com® CEO David
Doctorow. "UpNest has a proven track record of successfully
connecting homeowners looking to sell with the right agent for
them, and we believe that its innovative model complements our
existing ReadyConnect Concierge℠ program."
Consumers who submit leads through UpNest's marketplace receive
proposals from three to five agents within 12 hours. Those
consumers can then decide to contact and interview any of those
agents and select the agent they believe can best support them.
Since launch, approximately 1 million agent proposals have been
submitted on UpNest's marketplace, representing reputable
brokerages such as Keller Williams, Re/Max, Compass, and many
more.
Sellers who prefer to be connected directly with an agent in
Realtor.com®'s ReadyConnect Concierge℠ network can do so
directly from the "List your home with an agent" link on the Sell
tab on the Realtor.com® landing page. ReadyConnect
Concierge℠ applies a proven process to screen and convert online
leads, and 7 out of 10 of Realtor.com®'s concierge
customers have said the program was critical or important to their
business. More than 190,000 agents and 20,000 brokers in all 50
states participate in ReadyConnect Concierge℠.
Realtor.com® also connects sellers with agents
through Seller's Marketplace. Nearly a dozen companies in the
Seller's Marketplace offer selling options that allow homeowners to
sell their homes to an iBuyer; buy now, sell later; sell now, move
later; or access equity. Visitors can compare the selling options
available in their area, including listing their home on the open
market with an agent.
"Realtor.com has been growing momentum among seller audiences
with products like Seller's Marketplace and MyHome," said Doctorow.
"The addition of UpNest to our stable of seller-focused offerings
is a key element of our strategy to deliver the best experience and
value to home sellers as well as our agent and broker
customers."
"UpNest has helped hundreds of thousands of people sell their
homes with the help of top agents over the past eight years," said
UpNest Founder and CEO Simon Ru.
"We're excited to join the Realtor.com® family.
Realtor.com®'s audience reach and strong customer base
will help us connect even more sellers with the agents who can best
help them."
Simon Ru and the company's 50+ person team will join Move, Inc.
Terms of the acquisition were not made public.
About
Realtor.com®
Realtor.com®
makes buying, selling, renting and living in homes easier and
more rewarding for everyone. Realtor.com®
pioneered the world of digital real estate more than 25 years
ago, and today through its website and mobile apps offers a
marketplace where people can learn about their options, trust in
the transparency of information provided to them, and get services
and resources that are personalized to their needs. Using
proprietary data science and machine learning technology,
Realtor.com® pairs buyers and sellers with
local agents in their market, helping take the guesswork out of
buying and selling a home. For professionals,
Realtor.com® is a trusted provider of
consumer connections and branding solutions that help them succeed
in today's on-demand world. Realtor.com® is
operated by News Corp [Nasdaq:
NWS, NWSA] [ASX:
NWS, NWSLV] subsidiary Move, Inc. For more
information, visit Realtor.com®.
About Move, Inc.
Move, Inc., a subsidiary of
News Corp [Nasdaq:
NWS, NWSA] [ASX:
NWS, NWSLV], operates a family of
websites and mobile experiences for consumers and
professionals, including Realtor.com®. Move
licenses the Realtor.com URL from the National
Association of REALTORS®. Move also offers
software products and services to help real estate professionals
serve their clients and grow their business, including
ListHub™, the nation's leading listings syndicator and
centralized intelligence platform for the real estate
industry.
About UpNest
Launched in 2013, UpNest
(www.upnest.com) is a
real estate agent marketplace that matches home buyers and sellers
with top local agents who compete for their business. Buyers and
sellers receive personalized quotes offering competitive listing
commissions, buyer refunds (when applicable), and services.
UpNest was ranked on INC 500 Fastest Growing Private
Companies and on Deloitte Tech 500.
Media Contact
Stephanie
Singer
Stephanie.Singer@move.com
View original
content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/realtorcom-acquires-upnest-301564136.html
SOURCE Realtor.com