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NestingUp is an online tool for agents to create and manage buyer introductions for sellers.
Platforms: Browser; mobile-optimized
Ideal for: Individual agents; all size offices and teams; buyers
Top selling points
- Buyer landing page
- Fast, smooth letter creation template
- Video inclusion
Top concerns
Buyer “love letters” are a concern for some agents. There is fear sellers could violate Fair Housing (though using NestingUp does not pose such a risk) or create an unfriendly transaction environment.
What you should know
Buyer “love letters” are similar to open houses. Some agents believe they work and others feel they’re a waste of time. Some think they’re risky. An Inman Coast-to-Coast poll I conducted found the majority of respondents (7 out of 11) said they believed such letters were effective.
My agent wrote a letter on my behalf when I bought a house this summer, before I even asked about it. In my small, competitive, unfriendly buying market, I think it helped.
NestingUp seeks to give agents a simple and streamlined platform with which to create profiles and love letters for their buyers.
For those agents who believe these letters are effective — which, according to the poll, the majority of you do — there is a small monthly subscription fee of $10.
Agents create a profile on the site, which lets them send their buyers a basic form to fill out with details of their buyer story. The form offers space for photos and video introductions.
Agents are notified when the buyers completes their letter.
At the end, the buyer’s form is saved as a landing page, which agents can send out to listing agents or sellers.
The admin panel allows agents to save and edit their clients’ letters for ongoing adjustment to other listings.
One concern among agents is the risk of representing buyers who, in revealing their demographic and personal details to sellers, could be put at a disadvantage. It’s an ugly reality but a reality nonetheless. Fair Housing violations in these scenarios would be difficult to prove.
I also wonder if Facebook or another form of social media isn’t being used by sellers to judge potential buyers. It’s just as likely. At least a tool like NestingUp is making a professional go of challenging peoples’ bias.
“Agents will get into trouble with the Act when they require buyers to submit a NestingUp letter or profile with their purchase offers. So when sellers ask buyers to send pictures of themselves with their offers, you will set yourself up for issues with the Act. You cannot require a buyer to submit info about their religion, sex, etc. It’s up to the buyers if they want to disclose that info,” NestingUp Co-founder Evan Haug told me via email.
“We received legal consultation during the incubator program and again when we launched the product to ensure customers were not violating the Act when using the product,” he added.
Agents could also use NestingUp as a buyer tracker, a way to get to know customers. There’s nothing to say its intent can’t be adjusted.
Some effective upgrades could be inclusion of pre-approval letters, previous homes owned to demonstrate transaction experience, and a list of mortgage pros and other vendors they would use to ensure the deal gets done.
As a software product, NestingUp is well conceived and boils down the process to its most essential needs. There’s nothing here that isn’t needed.
The UI is somewhat weak and dated, but the software is only a few months old. I suspect that will change.
Have a technology product you would like to discuss? Email Craig Rowe.
