Felix Homes, the Nashville-based startup that launched in 2018 and lists homes at full price before buying at a prearranged discount, just launched a flat-fee service for those who do not qualify for its iBuyer program.
The “Felix Flat Fee” costs homesellers $3,500 regardless of the price of the home and works according to a traditional home resale model. According to Felix Homes founder Tyler Forte, the company’s original offering limited the type of homes they could accept — in order to guarantee a sale, they did not accept properties built before 1970 or that cost more than $400,000.
“It didn’t make sense to acquire a customer, build a relationship with them and then have to tell them ‘Sorry, we don’t currently offer any homebuying products,'” Forte said, adding that this fee service is meant to compete with the traditional 6 percent commission model.
Felix Homes founder Tyler Forte
As with its iBuyer service, the company will evaluate the home, schedule a photo shoot and get to work trying to sell it. The only difference is that, if for whatever reason the house doesn’t sell, the listing can expire without a sale just like a regular one — a situation that, according to Forte, is unlikely as the company would then work with the seller to lower the price and find a buyer. It has also launched Buy With Felix, which uses traditional agents for the buying side of the transaction.
“The guaranteed sale product is for the folks who need that safety net and certainty that their home will sell,” Forte said. “The flat fee model is really for folks that either don’t qualify for that model or want to sell a home without buying another one through Felix.” (As part of its efforts to give back to the community, Felix Homes is also offering to drop the $3,500 fee and sell the home for free for anyone who is a veteran or an active military member.)
As its rolls out its new services, Felix Homes partnered with Better Mortgage to help clients apply for a mortgage online. It is also partnering with two companies for valuation and moving services, although it is not yet able to reveal the companies’ names. Forte also told Inman that it has recently closed a seed funding round but declined to reveal how much money it raised.
Even though Felix Homes eventually hopes to branch out to other states, its more immediate plans include saturating the Tennessee market. According to Forte, the South is a particularly popular part of the country for iBuyers to thrive because as the economy and job market grow, developers have been rapidly building similar types of homes that are easy to price.
“You have a large developer going in, probably building a lot of homes,” he said. “If your neighbors’ home sold for $300,000 and your homes looks the same, you can be fairly sure that your home will sell for around $300,000 as well.”
How do you stay ahead in a changing market? Inman Connect Las Vegas — Featuring 250+ experts from across the industry sharing insight and tactics to navigate threat and seize opportunity in tomorrow’s real estate. Join over 4,000 top producers, brokers and industry leaders to network and discover what’s next, July 23-26 at the Aria Resort. Hurry! Tickets are going fast, register today!
Thinking of bringing your team? There are special onsite perks and discounts when you buy tickets together. Contact us to find out more.
