Next month, Keller Williams will launch an iBuyer offering, which will be called “Keller Offers.” Keller Offers will initially launch in the Dallas/Fort Worth market, and expand to six to eight “major” markets by the end of 2019, according to Market Watch. The company plans to spend $100 million on instant offers in 2019, and noted, “We see iBuying as an important additional offering for our agents to offer to home sellers.”
Meanwhile, Zillow recently revealed that its current goal for the iBuyer program is to be able to buy 5,000 homes per month within as little as three years, according to Housing Wire.
Zillow Offers allows homeowners to request a no-obligation cash offer from Zillow to buy their home. If they accept it, Zillow directly buys a seller’s house, prepares it for showings, and lists it for sale.
Consumers selling or buying a house to/from Zillow can also get a mortgage from Zillow, thanks to Zillow’s newly launched mortgage operation, Zillow Home Loans.
The question is this: What happens when there is a real estate correction? These are publicly traded companies. Will the taxpayers need to bail them out too?