Buying a home is expensive, but so is selling one. That’s because all the seller fees, legal expenses and realtor commissions add up, costing homeowners thousands of dollars when they sell their home.
Santa Monica-based startup HomeLister aims to help sellers save, and this week the company raised $4.5 million in a seed funding round to do just that.
HomeLister has created an online platform that helps homeowners list their homes for sale online, posting listings on MLS and major real estate websites like Zillow, Trulia and more. Traditionally, when individuals want to sell their home they have to go through a real estate firm and then pay for all the included services — like hiring a realtor, a professional photographer and so on. HomeLister takes more of an a la carte approach.
Sellers can pay for a basic, premium or platinum package ranging from $599 to $2,699 per listing. They can then add things like professional photography, a lockbox for showings, 3D tour and so on by paying extra. The goal is to allow sellers to pay for the services they want, while avoiding paying for things they don’t need. The company also charges flat fees, as opposed to the percentage taken by realtors, which can add up on more expensive sales.
“Our mission at HomeLister has always been to make listing and selling a home easy and affordable for homeowners. We are excited about the new round of funding enabling us to bring the best possible home sale experience to more markets and help save more homeowners incredible amounts of money,” HomeLister CEO and co-founder Lindsay McLean said in a statement.
The new funding will allow the company to invest in its technology and marketing efforts, grow to more markets and launch an updated website with additional tools. The company also has a few job openings for its marketing and brokerage teams.
VC firms MetaProp and Homebrew co-led the seed funding round.
