Opendoor launches services in NoCo, Boulder Valley
Opendoor Technologies Inc. (Nasdaq: OPEN) has expanded its digital home purchase operations into Northern Colorado, the Boulder Valley and Colorado Springs, effective today.
It joins an increasingly crowded field of companies in what has become known as the iBuyer movement — where real-estate buying companies provide near-instant offers on properties with flexibility to close deals within days of acceptance.
Opendoor, based in San Francisco, has been in an expansion mode across the country, with about 30 markets now part of its operation. Jim Lesinski, regional general manager, is based in Minnesota with responsibility for Minnesota, Colorado, Utah and Oregon. Operations already exist in Denver, and the Northern Colorado operation will be run from Denver until the company expands its base in the region, Lesinski told BizWest.
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The number of people to be employed in Northern Colorado will depend upon volume of activity, he said, but will likely be people assigned the task of preparing properties for resale.
Like other iBuyer services, Opendoor provides homeowners who want to sell their properties with a digital solution and an all-cash offer. Sellers walk away with cash, and Opendoor prepares the property for resale.
“Convenience” is the operative word for Opendoor. “All the things that need to be done [when selling a home] are eliminated,” Lesinski said. He touted the company’s “no touch service.” Home sellers walk Opendoor through the home using video, he said.
Opendoor charges the seller a 5% service fee. In addition to the fee, the company makes its money on resales if it is able to sell properties for more than what it paid and spent on upgrading and repairing.
Opendoor joins multiple other companies doing similar work. Zillow Offers, Offerpad, Redfin Now are among the national organizations in the iBuyer universe. Local real estate companies such as The Group in Fort Collins and 8z Real Estate in the region have homegrown versions.
Meanwhile, Zavvie, a Boulder-based company, began offering a service called Offer Optimizer in 2019 that helps sellers compare the iBuyer offers they might receive.
