3 minute read
The Zillow Aftermath
The Zillow Aftermath
Who wins and who loses. What are they going to do with all of those homes?
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INSTITUTIONAL LANDLORDS
There are some clear winners in the aftermath and one of the front runners is a company called Pretium Partners. Pretium is currently the 2nd largest single-family landlord in the country and rumored to be buying over 2,000 homes from Zillow. Not necessarily a good thing for the consumer as they’re also at the top of the list for complaints against them for evictions during the eviction moratorium. The company will of course say they’re by the book and the tenants say otherwise. No need to get in the middle of that but clearly a winner is the institutional landlord. Invitation Homes – the nation’s largest single-family landlord is reportedly interested as well. The sharks are circling!
THE REALTOR
No doubt there are a lot of Realtors that find joy in watching the Zillow implosion (myself included). Unfortunately, the depth of that perspective can be a bit shortsighted. Depending on the competitor, it can be fun to watch them go out of business or it can be a message. Here it’s a mixed bag. Zillow has been trying to put us out of business for a long time and it’s with great joy we sit back and enjoy the implosion. However, most Realtors are going to miss the message. The message is very clear that the consumer wants another option in selling a home. Which brings up another winner in this aftermath – other iBuyers and specifically, the local ones.
SMALL & LOCAL vs. LARGE NATIONAL BRAND
With the advent of institutional buyers entering (and exiting) the market, it gives the consumer another option in selling their home. The traditional method of listing your home, preparing for sale, staging, repairs, showing, inspections, appraisals and so on can be a thing of the past if you choose. You can now sell to a company for pretty much the same price the market will offer. They’ll relist and sell the home taking on the challenges, costs and process and hopefully make a profit along the way.
MarketPass is a clear winner and couldn’t be more proud of this company. Here’s an example of a national model done on a hyper-local level with the expertise needed to be successful. Who’d have thought that buying a home for the sake of a quick resale would take detailed analysis to do it right? Just about anybody buying and reselling a home but don’t tell that to the folks at Zillow. MarketPass is a company that we are partnered in and launched earlier this year. We’re like Opendoor but buy and sell homes only in the Minneapolis / St. Paul market. The large national model done in a hyper-local market with a focus on customer service means the consumer doesn’t miss out. This means that the benefit of having this option will always be there and done with expertise and customer service that only a small business can offer.
The consumer is still the big winner here as long as small and local businesses pick up the slack.
Taking the national model and doing it with local expertise means a home selling experience like no other. You can pick and choose a closing date.. change it if your circumstances adjust.. maintain possession of your home for days after selling so you can coordinate your move.. leave any personal property behind if it doesn’t fit, can’t move it or simply done with it.. no requirement to clean your home and certainly no worry about staging, showings, inspections, appraisals, buyer default or any of the challenges a traditional sale can create. In the end, the consumer is still the big winner as there’ll no doubt be many local companies filling the void. Luckily for this in the Twin Cities – MarketPass is already here!
