Maybe you’ve received an unsolicited offer recently to buy your home via email or postcard from Opendoor, a home buying firm. OpenDoor will make an offer on your house, bypassing the traditional method of selling your home via a REALTOR® using the MLS (which reaches 13,000+ REALTORS®) and entices you with catchy phrases on their website like “Get an instant offer and get paid” and “Skip showings and repairs”. It can sound good and SIMPLE but, according to the FTC complaint against OPENDOOR LABS, Inc. (Opendoor) and the agreement and consent order, “…consumers who sold to Opendoor have lost money compared to what they would have received through a traditional sale.”
The consent order which, according to a press release issued by Opendoor about the FTC complaint, they have agreed to, prohibits Opendoor from misrepresenting:
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1) that consumers will receive more money using a Real Estate Service than they would using a different good or service;
2) that consumers will save money;
3) that consumers will receive a price for their homes equivalent to what they would likely receive by listing their homes on the market;
4) the amount of repair costs consumers will pay;
5) that consumers will save money on repair costs;
6) that any offer to purchase a consumer’s home is an accurate and unbiased projection of that home’s market value; and
7) that the person or persons offering any good or service do not expect to make money from reselling homes.
The consent agreement further prohibits Opendoor “making any representation about the costs of selling a home traditionally unless the representation is non-misleading and Respondent has competent and reliable evidence to substantiate that the representation is true.”
What is the attraction to simply turning over your house to an iBuyer like Opendoor anyway?
In my 35 years as a REALTOR®, having helped over 1,500 families and seen the insides of some 10,000 homes, sellers are overwhelmed with the idea of selling — the thought of packing, cleaning, bringing the house up to code, making needed repairs that they have neglected for months or years, painting, and finally letting dozens of strangers in stops them from moving forward. Is it all necessary? That depends. This is why it PAYS, not COSTS, to interview an experienced REALTOR®. Your home is your largest investment by far and you deserve to have all your options on the table first before making a decision.
One of the most important jobs of a REALTOR® is to help a homeowner prepare their home for the first date with the potential buyers in order to maximize profit. We have resources at our fingertips to make the process less stressful, assisting with critical decisions on what repairs/improvements will have the greatest ROI.
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