Home61 lands new funding to expand beyond Miami market

Digital real estate platform Home61 said it launch its service in new markets after raising $4 million, including an investment from FF Angel, the early stage investment vehicle of Founders Fund, Peter Thiel’s Silicon Valley venture capital firm.

Other investors in the round include FJ Labs, a global marketplace investment firm.

For those unfamiliar with Home61, the company says that its platform uses automation to “streamline the buying and renting process, making it profitable for agents to provide excellent service to clients with all budgets while simplifying the experience for buyers and renters.” The system works by managing the entire real estate transaction, from the client’s searching website listings to signing the final closing papers. The company claims that its technology allows real estate agents to focus on customers of all budgets, as opposed to only those with big budgets.

“The stagnant real estate industry, which continues to rely on manual processes, could benefit greatly from innovation. Buying or renting a home today is a frustrating and complex experience,” the company said in a release. “Agents are incentivized by commissions, meaning only clients with large budgets receive attentive service. For everyone else, or ‘the other 80%,’ something as simple as setting up a viewing can take several days. Once a person finds the right home, it only becomes more complicated with mountains of paperwork and little guidance.”

Home61 also reckons its agents make significantly more money than typical real estate agents. It claims its agents make an average of $70,000 in their second year, compared to the industry average of just $8,930.

“This is because the system provides agents with a steady stream of leads, intensive training for up to 120 days and tools that automate manual tasks,” the company states. “This allows agents to focus solely on the client rather than the commission, ultimately making them more productive.”

According to the company, its platform has managed more than 1,000 closings since its launch in 2015. The company plans to use the new funding to expand beyond Miami to Chicago, Houston, and Phoenix. The company said that it plans to have a physical presence in each market in order to provide users with location-specific expertise.