Interested sellers can go to Zillow Offers and get a cash offer which the real estate company said eliminates the "hassle" of going the traditional route and listing a home for sale.
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Once homeowners enter their address and answer a few questions about their property, within 48 hours, they can receive a "fair market value offer" from Zillow and pick a closing date, the company said.
When Laguna Woods resident Donna Kish was selling her Riverside County home, she said it was exhausting to think about especially with up to $35,000 in estimated repairs.
"We didn't want to deal with contractors, hiring contractors, having them traipse through the home, tear it apart. We did not want people traipsing through our home with real estate agents," Kish said.
She and her husband decided to try out Zillow Offers. They filled out an online form, Zillow came for a walk through of the property, and within 48 hours, they were given a cash offer.
"It was seamless, comfortable. I didn't stress one bit," Kish said.
Kish didn't have to deal with repairs, an open house, and got to choose her closing date. They paid six to nine percent in fees for the transaction, and felt it was fair.
"You might think that it's a millennial thing, but it's not. The consumer is demanding ease and simplicity and it's pretty consistent across the board," said Suzanne Seini with Active Realty, a company working with Zillow in Orange and Riverside counties.
"It's very, very simple. Mainly done over the phone, the consumer doesn't have to go out of their way to meet with anyone if they don't want to," said Seini.
This is why traditional real estate agents aren't on board. Rob Pocock with TMG Real Estate Consultants still believes in the realtor relationship.
"For the easiness and convenience, there's a cost to that. As the consumer, if you're OK paying that additional cost, then that might be the way to go, but if you're trying to net the most money for your property, you need a traditional real estate agent," said Pocock.
According to an analysis by Zillow, sellers who declined an offer and decided to sell traditionally sold their homes for an average of 0.22% more than Zillow's offer.
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The company also said it will take care of necessary repairs to the home after closing a sale. Zillow also gets 7% of the selling price.
Zillow Offers has been available in Riverside County since the beginning of the year and is expected to expand to other locations across the country by the middle of 2020.