THIS WEEK'S INDUSTRY HEADLINES WITH KEVIN KAUFFMAN & FRED WEAVER

Zillow President Greg Schwartz to leave company at end of year

Schwartz joined Zillow in 2007, and the company will realign responsibilities under current leaders

 

Greg Schwartz, the president of media and marketplaces and a 12-year veteran of Zillow, is leaving the real estate tech giant at the end of the year, the Seattle-based company confirmed to Inman Monday. Zillow will shuffle oversight of the company’s segments among its current leadership with no current plans to replace Schwartz’s role.

Schwartz, in a statement, said he was going to take some time off before finding his next role.

 

 

 

Bungalow, an iRenter, nabs $47M to scale 'co-living' business

Bungalow expects to lease units to 12,000 tenants by the end of 2020

 

Two new types of real estate tech startups have been sucking up more oxygen lately: “co-living” startups that facilitate living with roommates and “iRenters” — basically iBuyers for the rental market

 

Bungalow, has announced bagging an additional $47 million in one of the larger funding rounds for a real estate startup as of late. That brings its total funding to $68 million so far, by Forbes’ count.

As an “iRenter,” Bungalow has been leasing single-family homes from their owners, repurposing them to accommodate more tenants and then subleasing the units room by room to a target demographic of 20-something professionals.

In some ways, this resembles how iBuyers have tackled the housing market: rather than sell a home on behalf of a homeowner, they make offers on homes and buy them directly.

 

Two years after its official launch, Bungalow reports leasing units to more than 3,200 tenants living in 730 homes across 10 markets, including New York City, Washington, D.C., Chicago, Los Angeles and Seattle. It expects to “accommodate” more than 12,000 tenants by the end of 2020.

 

 

 

First American Financial Corporation, a provider of title insurance, settlement services and risk solutions for real estate transactions, announced on Tuesday the launch of Endpoint, a new stand-alone company.

 

Endpoint is a mobile-first title and escrow company that, according to First American, provides a re-imagined closing experience for buyers, sellers and real estate agents. First American has invested $30 million to develop and grow the company.

“Our investment in Endpoint reflects our commitment to developing innovative, state-of-the-art technologies that improve the process of transacting real estate,” said Dennis Gilmore, chief executive officer at First American.

The announcement outlined some of Endpoint’s features, including:

• Documents are completed in the app, with clear guidance as to what information is needed and how much time each task is likely to take;

• Earnest money can be transferred digitally and all parties are notified once the money is received;

• E-signatures can be completed in the platform, while a mobile notary can be scheduled to facilitate a wet-signature at no additional cost.