Real Estate Technology
Flyhomes | September 12, 2023
Flyhomes, creator of the world’s best home buying and selling experience, has entered into a definitive agreement to purchase certain assets from Innovative Holdings, LLC, doing business as Home Sale Assured, a leader in the field of ‘buy before you sell.’ Founded in early 2022 by Eric Meadow, Home Sale Assured’s flagship product is the Guaranteed Backup Contract, which empowers existing homeowners to buy their next home before closing on the sale of their current one. As part of the deal, Flyhomes will be acquiring the Home Sale Assured brand, and Meadow will be joining Flyhomes in a senior executive capacity where he’ll report to EVP of Mortgage & Closing, Dan Richards.
“Eric is a seasoned mortgage professional who has built something really special with the Guaranteed Backup Contract,” said Tushar Garg, co-founder and CEO at Flyhomes. “Its ability to remove friction from the buying and selling process, while adding assurance, flexibility, and customer-centricity, aligns perfectly with our core tenants here at Flyhomes. This deal strengthens our offerings and gives us more tools to serve more customers looking for a better way to buy and sell a home.”
Following the close of the deal, lender and realtor partners will be able to continue offering their customers access to the Guaranteed Backup Contract through the Home Sale Assured brand at Flyhomes. Understanding the importance of the customer-agent relationship, Guaranteed Backup Contract was designed to enhance the role of real estate agents and lenders. This ensures everyone moves in unison toward the common goals of seamlessly transitioning the customer into their new home and selling their prior home for maximum value.
“We’re thrilled to be adding Eric and the Home Sale Assured brand to the Flyhomes family of products,” said Dan Richards, EVP of Mortgage & Closing at Flyhomes. “Eric brings 25 years of mortgage industry experience, from his time as President of Celebrity Home Loans (at the time a national multi-billion dollar retail lender) to his recent success as an entrepreneur at Home Sale Assured. His deep operational knowledge and network of relationships will play a key role in extending our portfolio of products nationwide.”
“It’s an honor to be joining Flyhomes at such a critical point in residential real estate,” said Eric Meadow, CEO and founder of Home Sale Assured. “There remain far too many obstacles to home ownership these days, be it first-time home buyers, or in the case of Home Sale Assured, current homeowners trying to move. Consumers, agents and lenders are all looking for practical solutions to overcome these institutional challenges and Flyhomes has been at the forefront of this category. I’m ecstatic to now be able to leverage their advanced infrastructure and resources to bring the Guaranteed Backup Contract to more customers.”
Benefits of the Guaranteed Backup Contract:
With a valid purchase offer, a lender is able to apply standard agency guidelines to remove the departing debt obligation from the consumer’s debt to income ratio. Thus allowing the lender to approve the loan on the new home before the consumer closes on the sale of their prior home.
The consumer is able to close on and move into their new home and take up to 90 days to close on the sale of their prior home.
The consumer can work with a real estate agent to list their prior home for sale during this 90-day option period. If the consumer receives a better offer, they can cancel the Guaranteed Backup Contract and sell their home to the higher offer.
About Flyhomes
Flyhomes is building the world’s best homebuying and selling experience. Launched in 2016, Flyhomes has reinvented the homebuying and selling process at every step, making the process smoother and simpler for consumers with offerings like the Flyhomes Cash Offer and Buy Before You Sell. They back these services with a unique guarantee that gives both buyers and sellers certainty and peace of mind that is unheard of in real estate. To date, they’ve helped clients close on more than $6 billion worth of homes at prices ranging from $150,000 to $7 million.
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Real Estate Technology
REcolorado | September 28, 2023
Today, in partnership with proptech leader SkySlope, Colorado’s largest real estate multiple listing service, REcolorado, announced they will co-develop an innovative product called Offer Insights. Scheduled to be released first to REcolorado subscribers in early 2024, Offer Insights harnesses the power of machine learning and market data to alert agents of opportunities and potential errors as they are completing real estate forms. This feature streamlines processes and boosts compliance by delivering market-aware suggestions to agents, using real-time data to signal when any information entered on a form falls above or below accepted industry standards.
“When co-developing Offer Insights, we wanted to improve compliance, but we also wanted to provide REcolorado subscribers with essential market visibility,” said SkySlope CEO Tyler Smith. “Offer Insights will provide key indicators of what’s happening in the local market. Agents who use it will have access to beneficial information that’s not available anywhere else.”
REcolorado is dedicated to engaging with their subscribers to gain a true understanding of their ever-evolving needs, which gives the company the ability to develop technological solutions that address those needs while also advancing the industry. By participating in co-development partnerships like this, REcolorado’s expertise can be leveraged to build meaningful solutions that give brokers and agents the ability to serve their clients as a trusted advisor.
“Our subscribers trust us to listen and understand their needs so we can deliver the data, services, and insights that can be used to serve their clients and advance their businesses,” explains REcolorado President and CEO Gene Millman. “With their ability to transform data into powerful solutions that help brokers and agents work efficiently by making transactions move more smoothly, SkySlope is an ideal partner for us.”
The REcolorado-SkySlope partnership underscores the ongoing movement among MLSs to evolve their services. By embracing collaboration with technology partners and brokerage leaders, MLSs are identifying agent pain points and actively participating in the development of tech-forward solutions that empower their subscribers to serve their clients efficiently and effectively.
“This strategic partnership will develop a service that keeps our subscribers’ needs squarely in focus,” said Millman. “These types of collaborations are essential to creating innovations that will give agents a competitive advantage as the industry shifts.”
Additionally, REcolorado will soon be launching two SkySlope signature solutions, SkySlope Offers and SkySlope Forms, to over 26,000 Colorado real estate professionals. Designed to bring time-saving automation to real estate transactions, these solutions significantly reduce administrative tasks for agents.
About REcolorado
REcolorado is the largest Multiple Listing Service (MLS) in Colorado with over 26,000 professional subscribers who operate throughout the state. Recipient of Inman’s 2023 Innovator Award in the MLS, Association, or Industry category, REcolorado's vision is to empower a trusted, cooperative, and comprehensive real estate marketplace to position customers for success by providing data, technology, and intelligence. The company is REALTOR® owned and serves real estate professionals including the members of Denver Metro Association of REALTORS®, South Metro Denver REALTOR® Association, Mountain Metro Association of REALTORS®, REALTORS® of Central Colorado, and Steamboat Springs Board of REALTORS.
About SkySlope
Established in 2011, SkySlope is the customer experience platform managing real estate transactions from contract to close. Serving over 650,000 real estate professionals across the U.S. and Canada, SkySlope manages nearly 3 million transactions annually. SkySlope is on a mission to build solutions that reshape the real estate industry by creating the most powerful autonomous transaction platform. For more information, visit SkySlope.
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Real Estate Investment
Globe Newswire | October 12, 2023
SRS Real Estate Partners today announced an expansion of its industrial services to Miami with the addition of a veteran three-person team. Wayne Schuchts will lead SRS’ industrial practice in Florida and is joined by Andrew Lehrer and Michael Palmer. The team will focus on representing owners, tenants, and investors of industrial property throughout Florida.
“The addition of this team and the creation of a Miami office will be a game changer in Florida for SRS,” said Chris Maguire, SRS Chairman and CEO. “We have been looking for the right opportunity to enhance our capabilities in Orlando, Tampa and Fort Lauderdale, and adding this seasoned industrial team will make a significant impact in the state.”
This is the second industrial team to join SRS in the last month. In early September the company announced a significant expansion that included new team members in Atlanta and Southern California.
“Wayne, Andrew and Michael are a fantastic addition to our industrial team,” said Brant Landry, SRS Industrial Managing Principal. “They have an extensive track record throughout Florida providing exceptional services for their clients, and they give SRS a strong presence in the state. Wayne and I worked together at the Staubach Company previously and I’m looking forward to teaming up with him again.”
Schuchts, previously a partner at Avison Young, joins SRS as Managing Principal and brings more than three decades of commercial real estate experience. Specializing in industrial property transactions for institutional investors and corporate users, he has negotiated more than $5 billion and 12 million square feet of transactions, including 60-plus transactions involving properties greater than 100,000 square feet.
“The opportunity to partner with Brant again as well as Chris Maguire and the rest of the SRS team to lead the industrial practice in Florida is the perfect fit,” said Schuchts. “The culture, client-first mindset and high-level professionals at SRS provide the ideal platform to serve best-in-class clients.”
Lehrer joins SRS as a Vice President with the industrial team. He was previously with Flagler Global Logistics, the largest industrial developer in Florida. With almost 20 years of commercial real estate experience, Lehrer has been involved in more than $2 billion in transactions and has handled 11 million square feet of institutional product for landlords. His experience includes build-to-suits, master-planned business park leasing, third-party logistics, sale-leasebacks, manufacturing facilities, and cold storage properties. He focuses on tenant and landlord representation, as well as advising developers in South Florida.
Palmer also joins SRS as a Vice President in industrial. He previously worked with Schuchts at Avison Young. Palmer has seven years of commercial real estate experience, specializing in industrial property transactions on behalf of institutional investors, family offices and corporate occupiers. He earned his SIOR designation and CCIM designation in 2018.
SRS Industrial was formed in April 2022 when Managing Principal Brant Landry and a team of industrial specialists joined SRS to help the firm expand on its retail foundation and offer more extensive commercial real estate solutions to tenants, owners and investors.
The SRS Industrial team works directly with retailers, distributors and manufacturing companies to support their evolving needs for industrial space, while also serving more traditional industrial clients through tenant and owner services, capital markets, and development services. The team has logged more than 1,000 transactions totaling $92.8 billion in transaction value.
About SRS Real Estate Partners
Founded in 1986, SRS Real Estate Partners is building upon its retail foundation to provide extensive commercial real estate solutions to tenants, owners, and investors. Headquartered in Dallas, with more than 28 offices in the U.S., SRS has grown into one of the industry’s most influential and respected leaders. Our commitment to excellence is strengthened by our Guarantee of Value and our success is measured in the achievement of our clients’ objectives, satisfaction, and trust.
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