David Eraker, the founder of high-tech real estate brokerage company Redfin Corp., has left “to pursue new opportunities,” according to a company announcement this week.
Eraker, who started Redfin as a software company for the real estate brokerage industry, grew his venture into a real estate brokerage that offers online mapping and a data-intensive site for property searches.
“This was a company run out of apartments, by people working without pay, often against long odds,” Eraker said in a statement. “With that kind of heart, we’ve been able to come a long way from where we began, and can go much further still.”
Glenn Kelman, CEO for Redfin, said in a statement, “It’s a rare entrepreneur who has the vision and energy to re-imagine one of the largest, most traditional industries in America. We all owe a great debt to David and wish him well.”
The company this year expanded to the San Francisco Bay Area market and added a feature that allows consumers to make online offers to purchase properties. This week the company announced a 100 percent satisfaction guarantee for real estate consumers who use this online program, called Redfin Direct. Redfin agents handle offer advice, negotiations and closing for real estate transactions that originate online.
“As with a traditional brokerage, Redfin Direct customers can choose to work with another brokerage at any point during the home search; Redfin only earns a fee when a customer buys a home,” the company announced. “But unlike a traditional brokerage, Redfin also guarantees its services through closing. If a customer buys a home through Redfin but becomes unhappy during the closing process, Redfin completes the close but refunds its entire fee.”
Rob McGarty, Redfin’s director of real estate operations, said in a statement, “Traditionally, if a deal closes an agent is paid regardless of whether the customer is happy with her real estate agent’s service.”
