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Associated Press
5 hours ago
- Business
- Associated Press
ByOwner Expands into 44 States, Empowering Homeowners to Save Big on Selling Their Home
06/23/2025, Boca Raton, Florida // PRODIGY: Feature Story // ByOwner ByOwner announces a major expansion, now operating in 44 states across the United States, up from 15 states just 2 years ago. This significant development symbolizes a new chapter for the company, strengthening its mission to offer homeowners a smarter, more affordable way to sell their homes without the high costs associated with traditional real estate agents. With a strong belief that homeowners should have more control and transparency in the home-selling process, ByOwner has been steadily evolving its platform since its acquisition and relaunch in 2011. Over the past decade, the company has evolved into a fully licensed real estate brokerage, combining professional-grade services with cost-effective benefits, providing sellers with an effective solution to maximize their overall savings on brokerage fees. 'When we first started, we were able to add up to 15 states to our package, but now, we have a pretty thorough coverage of the majority of the population in the United States, and most of that has happened within the last year,' says Greg Sullivan, President of ByOwner. The pioneering real estate company started its journey as a print publication that included real estate and vehicles; later, it chose to focus on the real estate industry alone. At the heart of the company's offerings is its ability to offer sellers access to the Multiple Listing Service (MLS), a database used by traditional agents and brokers that has not been available to sellers who choose to sell on their own. While most brokers charge an exorbitant commission rate to sellers, ByOwners empowers homeowners to list their properties on the MLS platform at a low commission fee of just 0.25% (a quarter of 1%) of the sale price. This gives them the same level of exposure to buyers and agents nationwide, ensuring their listing appears on all large-scale websites, all while evading the traditional buyer's agent fee, which is normally much higher. For sellers, this acts as a paradigm shift in both visibility and savings. 'With a model like ours and low commissions, sellers aren't forced to pay any buyer's agent fees,' Sullivan states. 'They can sell their home with massive savings.' 'The average home in the United States sells for $350,000. On a traditional model, this would be about $21,000 in commission, but with our model, you can do the whole transaction for an upfront cost of $195, and then we charge only a 0.25% commission,' Sullivan explains. With no hidden fees, ByOwner provides homeowners with the ability to manage their selling processes at their own pace. They offer sellers the ability to save thousands of dollars on their home sale without sacrificing the exposure they get from a traditional broker. 'There are a lot of people who don't know that a service like this exists out there, where they get the same MLS exposure with a significant percentage in commission savings,' Sullivan explains. ByOwner gives sellers the tools and platforms to manage their selling journey, such as setting the price, scheduling open houses, or negotiating while still providing them with the exposure to connect with serious buyers. With its limited-service model, the company enforces its ethos of keeping costs low and value high. As ByOwner celebrates its milestone of expanding to 44 states in the country, the company's ambitions have only grown further with it. With plans to enter the remaining states soon and become a comprehensive national service, the company is preparing for a fundraising round to expand its reach and bring more technological advancements and tools to its sellers. Over the years, ByOwner has upheld its values of not cutting corners, but only cutting costs. With a commitment to empowering sellers and home buyers, ByOwner stands out as a proven, practical solution headed towards making an affordable, low-commission home-selling model a national prerogative. The information provided is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute financial, investment, legal, or other professional advice. Media Contact Name: Greg Sullivan Email: [email protected] Source published by Submit Press Release >> ByOwner Expands into 44 States, Empowering Homeowners to Save Big on Selling Their Home
New York Times
11 hours ago
- Business
- New York Times
Compass Sues to Stop ‘Zillow Ban'
Compass, the real estate brokerage that sells more houses than any of its competitors in the United States, has sued Zillow, the country's largest real estate site — in a legal showdown that accuses Zillow of gatekeeping home listings and of breaking federal antitrust laws. In its suit that was filed in New York federal court on Monday morning, Compass claims that Zillow is engaged in an anticompetitive conspiracy to maintain a monopoly over digital home listings. Online real estate portals have become an integral part of the home-buying process, with nearly 100 percent of buyers now reporting that they use the internet in their home searches. And Zillow, which has a database with about 160 million properties and receives about 227 million unique visitors every month, is the undisputed giant of digital real estate sites. The lawsuit between two industry heavyweights marks a significant escalation in an ever-raucous debate over who controls home listings. Brokerages like Compass have sought to find ways to make their listings stand out: Since November, the company has been heavily promoting its Private Exclusives, a marketing channel of about 7,000 home listings available only to Compass agents and the buyers working with them. But in April, Zillow announced that any home that was put on the market but not available for listing on Zillow within 24 hours would be forever banned from its site. Compass calls the action the 'Zillow ban.' 'To protect its market dominance, Zillow has retaliated against competitive threats by enacting an exclusionary policy,' Compass claims in its suit. Representatives from Zillow were not immediately available for comment on the lawsuit Monday morning. Earlier this year, Errol Samuelson, Zillow's chief industry development officer, told The New York Times that the website was created to promote transparency in the industry and that private listings are at odds with that spirit. The turf war throughout the industry has ensnarled Redfin, another online brokerage, which has taken a posture similar to that of Zillow and is called 'co-conspirator' in the lawsuit, though is not a defendant. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Entrepreneur
30-05-2025
- Business
- Entrepreneur
Housing Market Hits a Record, More Sellers Than Buyers
According to a new analysis, there were nearly half a million more home sellers than buyers in April, the biggest gap recorded since 2013. Home sellers now substantially outnumber home buyers in the U.S., indicating a shift to a buyer's market, according to an analysis released on Thursday by real estate brokerage Redfin. Sellers outnumbered buyers by 33.7% in April, representing a gap of 490,041 people — the largest difference since Redfin began compiling this data in 2013. Redfin estimates that there were approximately 1.9 million home sellers and 1.5 million homebuyers in the U.S. in April. This marks the highest number of home sellers since March 2020. Related: Here's How Much You Need to Make Per Year to Buy a Typical Home in the U.S., According to a New Report "At no other point in records dating back to 2013 have sellers outnumbered buyers by this large of a number or percentage," the analysis states. A year ago, sellers outnumbered buyers by a smaller 6.5%. Redfin estimates that 31 of the 50 most populated metropolitan areas are buyer's markets, where sellers outnumbered buyers by at least 10% in April. The biggest buyer's market in the U.S. is Miami, Florida, where there are 197% more sellers than buyers with a median home sale price of $574,696. Other buyers' markets include Austin, Texas; Phoenix, Arizona; and Nashville, Tennessee. In New York's tony Hamptons, summer rentals are down 30% from the same time in previous years. Still, Redfin predicts that home prices will only drop 1% year-over-year by the end of 2025 because "it's actually very hard for home prices to fall, unless sellers have to sell," Redfin's Head of Economics Research, Chen Zhao, told CNN. Home prices have recently risen for the 22nd consecutive month. According to data released last week from the National Association of Realtors, median home sales prices rose 1.8% year-over-year last month to $414,000. The Northeast and Midwest reported price increases while the South and West saw price decreases. Meanwhile, the number of home sales dropped 0.5% from March to April. Related: Tariffs Might Help Lower Mortgage Rates, According to a 40-Year Mortgage Expert Mortgage rates are also elevated, contributing to the overall high cost of owning a home. The average rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage is 6.94% at the time of writing, according to Bankrate, more than double the record-low 2.65% reached during the pandemic in January 2021. Where Is It Still a Seller's Market? The strongest seller's market was Newark, New Jersey, with an estimated 5,200 sellers and nearly 10,000 buyers in April. Home prices soared in the area last month, with the city's median home sale price rising 12.2% from a year prior to reach $622,545. Other sellers' markets include Nassau County, NY; New Brunswick, New Jersey; and Providence, Rhode Island. Related: Barbara Corcoran Says This Is the Interest Rate Magic Number That Will Make the Market 'Go Ballistic'
