Kim-Mai Cutler via TechCrunch

Keith Rabois’ Homebuying Startup OpenDoor Raises $9.95M From Everyone

“Before you start worrying about real estate speculators, OpenDoor is launching in three markets outside of California and is only for owner-occupied homes. Co-founder Eric Wu did not specify which markets, but he said the company is more concerned with markets where there isn’t a lot of liquidity or demand.”

“In contrast, Wu said the rest of the $20 trillion U.S. residential real estate market is one of the least liquid kinds of markets even though it represents such a vital kind of asset to Americans across the country. He argues this lack of liquidity ties people to debt and jobs or locations that may not benefit them anymore. Real estate transactions often take more than 90 days and homeowners often don’t have enough capital for a down payment or a mortgage, which makes home buying stressful.

Wu didn’t go into how the product will work, because it has yet to launch.”

I’m must be missing something. Just because you make it easier to buy a turd, doesn’t mean people will start buying lots and lots of turds.

UPDATE: 2/10/24 – Drew Meyers of GeekEstate Blog has a few ideas of how this might work. – And I still don’t get it.