Fintech startup HomeLight has made its way to The Lone Star State with the launch of its cash offer and trade-in programs, thanks to a $100 million credit facility by leading financial service provider Credit Suisse.
Homebuyers and homesellers across the state will be able to use HomeLight’s services, with dedicated staff in Dallas, Austin and Houston.
Drew Uher | Photo credit: HomeLight
“At HomeLight, we are deeply committed to providing the best agents in the U.S. with the most innovative solutions to compete and win in today’s real estate landscape,” HomeLight Founder and CEO Drew Uher said in a statement on Wednesday. “With the expansion of HomeLight Trade-In and HomeLight Cash Offer into Texas, thousands of top agents can apply to have access to these revolutionary products enabling them to provide their clients with real estate transactions that are simple, certain, and satisfying.”
With HomeLight Cash Offer, HomeLight purchases a home on a homebuyers’ behalf so they won’t miss out on the home of their dreams while securing mortgage financing. After evaluating their income and assets to determine their buying power, HomeLight will make an all-cash offer on the listing of the buyer’s choice. After securing a mortgage, the buyer will purchase the home from HomeLight, plus a program fee of 1 to 1.5 percent.
Meanwhile, homesellers can use HomeLight Trade-In to skip the tenuous process of balancing two mortgages or securing a bridge loan. With HomeLight Trade-In, HomeLight will purchase the seller’s home for 90 percent of the home’s expected value on the open market. While HomeLight lists and sells the home with an agent, sellers can use the cash to purchase their next abode.
If the home sells for more than HomeLight’s purchase price, the company pays the client the difference, minus a program fee that ranges from 1.5 to 4 percent, based on the market, whether the seller uses HomeLight Home Loans, and the number of days HomeLight owns the home.
Homesellers in Texas who use HomeLight Home Loans for their next purchase will have a base program fee of 2 percent, which will rise 1.0 percent per month after an initial 60-day sale timeline. Homesellers who use another lender will have a base fee of 4.0 percent, which is subject to the same 1.0 percent increase.
The additional fee will be pro-rated for sales that happen between the first and last day of the month, a HomeLight explainer reads.
“Based on transactions closed since December 2019, HomeLight Trade-In homes have sold for 5 percent above valuation, closed five times faster, and helped clients save 3.5 percent on the purchase price of their new home compared to the traditional method of listing on the market,” Uher explained. “Offers powered by HomeLight Cash Offer, meanwhile, have saved home buyers up to 4.4 percent compared to offers with a loan.”
HomeLight Cash Offer and HomeLight Trade-In are also available in California, while homebuyers and homesellers across the nation can access HomeLight’s other services.
