Ribbon Expands to Arkansas, Enabling Homebuyers to Upgrade their Offers to All Cash

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May 23, 2022, 09:30 ET

Homeownership company focused on making homeownership achievable for Little Rock homebuyers; Crye-Leike to serve as first partner in the state

NEW YORK, May 23, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Ribbon, the homeownership company, today announces its expansion to Arkansas beginning with Little Rock. With Ribbon, Arkansas homebuyers can now make all-cash offers through Ribbon's Cash Offers, waiving mortgage, appraisal, and home sale contingencies.

For many, purchasing a home is part of the American dream. However, a combination of low inventory, bidding wars, Wall Street investors, and increased rent prevents buyers from buying or saving for a home— sometimes preventing their homeownership dreams.

Homebuyers in Arkansas have felt similarly. Despite a 30.2 % increase in new listings compared to last year, there were 24.6% fewer homes for sale in February in Arkansas than the year prior, and the median days a home was on the market was cut nearly in half from 58 days to 30 days year over year. Housing trends in Little Rock are following state and national trends. Across the country, home prices were up 15.2%, while the number of homes available for sale was down 33.2% in December 2021 compared to the year prior.

"The quick pace of homes sold in Arkansas indicates the hard competition buyers face, driven by Wall Street investors and high net-worth individuals with all-cash offers. Having access to cash offers through RibbonCash will empower Arkansas homebuyers to compete on equal footing with institutional investors," said Shaival Shah, CEO and co-founder of Ribbon.

"Ribbon's mission is to help ease these challenges, and - with the power of our cash offers - we're leveling the playing field for Arkansas homebuyers and their agents."

Arkansas is also home to five US military bases, including the Little Rock Air Force Base. In 2021, 12,396 Arkansas Veterans applied for home loans, compared to 5,525 in 2019, according to Veterans United Home Loans. Veteran homebuyers often face unique challenges as sacrosanct VA loans can face headwinds given the misperceptions, lengthy process, and increased cash offers and investor activity. With Ribbon as an advocate, Veterans can win their dream homes.

With RibbonCash Offers, homebuyers can make an all-cash offer on their dream home: waiving mortgage, appraisal, and home sale contingencies. Ribbon's guaranteed close gives buyers, sellers, and agents added predictability.

Ribbon and Crye-Leike partner to empower homebuyers in Arkansas

To offer as many prospective buyers a competitive advantage as possible on day one, Ribbon's first launch partner in Arkansas will be Crye-Leike, ranked the third largest independently-owned real estate company in the nation. With RibbonCash, Crye-Leike agents will have a powerful tool to help everyday buyers compete - even in the most competitive market conditions, head-to-head with investors.

"We're excited for our agents and buyers in Little Rock, as leveraging Ribbon will allow them more success their offers," said Angie Johnson, Managing Broker of Crye-Leike in Benton, Arkansas. "By making offers not contingent on appraisal and the equivalent of cash, they can compete with investors. It's a win for the buyer, the seller and our agents who show fewer houses to get an accepted offer."

In addition to Arkansas, Ribbon operates in North Carolina, South Carolina, Texas, Tennessee, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Missouri, Oklahoma, Virginia and Indiana, with plans to expand to half of the U.S. by the end of 2022. For more information about Ribbon, visit www.ribbonhome.com.

About Ribbon:
Founded in 2017 in New York and Charlotte, Ribbon is on a mission to make homeownership achievable. A tech-enabled homeownership company, Ribbon allows everyday families to compete on a level playing field with high-net-worth individuals and institutional buyers by upgrading their offers to winning RibbonCash Offers. Ribbon empowers agents, brokerages, and lenders to create a world-class experience for home buyers and sellers through powerful financial products and digital workflow software. Visit ribbonhome.com.

About Crye-Leike:
Crye-Leike is a full-service real estate company founded in Memphis in 1977. Today it is ranked the third largest, independently-owned real estate company in the nation and the largest real estate company serving markets in Tennessee, Arkansas, Georgia, Mississippi and the Mid-South. Crye-Leike has a network of more than 3,200+ licensed sales associates, 600+ staff members and over 130+ branch and franchise offices located throughout an eight-state region of Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, Oklahoma, and Tennessee. Crye-Leike also has a franchise location in Puerto Rico.