New York City-based real estate technology and alternative finance company Orchard announced Tuesday the launch of a new concierge service that allows home sellers to make upgrades and repairs to their homes at no upfront cost, before listing the home on the market.
Court Cunningham | Photo credit: Orchard
The company pairs its new concierge service with the company’s offering that enables customers to buy before they sell, giving consumers a multitude of selling options.
“We’re thrilled to bring Orchard’s concierge service to customers so that they can get top dollar for their old home without any of the hassle,” Court Cunningham, the CEO and co-founder of Orchard, said in a statement. “This, paired with our Move First offering, is giving customers the best of both worlds: they can move into their new home first while maximizing profits on their old one — something you can’t get with a traditional broker.”
Orchard was launched initially to serve dual-track consumers both buying and selling a home at the same time. The company operates in essentially three phases: a modern search platform, enabling customers to buy before they sell with a guarantee, and an all-digital close.
Orchard guarantees a home sale in 120 days or they’ll buy your home, and allows consumers to use that offer as capital for their own homebuying.
In September, the company nabbed a $69 million Series C round and has since begun launching a host of new products in its goal to be the “Amazon of real estate.”
In October, Orchard launched a new technology platform, Orchard Dashboard, which aims to serve consumers throughout the entire real estate transaction, from search to close. In December, the company added home insurance and warranty services.
The latest addition of a concierge service is another step towards eliminating or streamlining one of the pain points of selling a home. Orchard covers the cost of any work upfront and manages the work for the consumer.
Customers interested in the service can opt for a free assessment of their home, where Orchard’s experts will recommend the scope of work and the two sides will agree on a budget. The work is done by vetted partners and managed by Orchard and the cost of the work is deducted from the consumer’s final proceeds.
Concierge services began rising in popularity last year, with brokerages and franchisors like Compass and Keller Williams creating similar offerings and other technology companies like Curbio coming to market with conceirge solutions for consumers.
