Technology-Powered Real Estate Brokerage Redfin Arrives in Charlotte

CHARLOTTE, N.C., Feb. 14, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Redfin, the technology-powered brokerage (www.redfin.com), today announced its arrival in Charlotte, bringing North Carolinians its one-of-a-kind combination of technology and service, just in time for the spring home-buying and selling season. Redfin is also opening in Raleigh-Durham and Houston this month, for a total of 21 major markets across the United States.

"Charlotte is growing fast, especially among the young professionals who have traditionally been the largest segment of Redfin's business," said Redfin CEO Glenn Kelman. "We hope to offer folks across the Carolinas real estate data and service that had never been available to them before: national-caliber online tools but with locally sourced data on every home for sale, and an agent who's really accountable for delivering the result that's right for them. We can also save Carolinas home-buyers thousands in fees."

Redfin is hosting a free welcome event on Thursday, March 7 at Byron's South End in Charlotte, from 5 to 7 p.m. to celebrate. For every person who attends this event, Redfin will donate $10 to Communities In Schools of Charlotte-Mecklenburg, Inc.

In the Charlotte area, Redfin agents can now serve buyers and sellers in all of Mecklenburg County, in addition to Union and Cabarrus Counties, including South Charlotte to Center City, up to Lake Norman.

The Redfin model is different from that of other brokers, uniquely aligning agent and customer interests. Every client who works with Redfin receives a satisfaction survey, whether his or her deal closes or not, and every review is published online. Customer satisfaction ratings, not commissions, determine the agents' bonus pay. Additionally, unlike traditional real estate agents, most Redfin agents get salaries, health care benefits, and opportunities for stock options.

Julie McGee Sharpe, a Charlotte native with more than a decade of real estate industry experience, joins Redfin as the area manager for North Carolina. "I am delighted to be a part of Redfin's mission to reinvent real estate, and can't wait to introduce the company to North Carolina," she said. "Redfin understands that a real estate company's best assets are its agents, which is why we're salaried employees with a voice in how the company is run. Not to mention, being paid to make clients happy makes a world of difference in the kind of service we offer."

Redfin refunds homebuyers up to half of the buyer's agent commission. To date, Redfin has refunded clients more than $100 million in commissions. For a $300,000 home, a Redfin client would save more than $2,000. For listing clients, Redfin charges 1.5 percent as opposed to the typical 3 percent of a traditional agent, depending on the selling price of the home. For someone selling a $300,000 home, that would be a savings of $4,500. A person who buys and sells a home with Redfin saves on both sides of the transaction. Redfin promotes clients' listings on its website, mobile tools and via e-mail, delivering double the traffic and exposure that other listings get on Redfin.com.

Redfin technology makes home buying and selling more efficient, and technology is the reason Redfin can refund customers thousands of dollars. Additionally, Redfin.com has several website features that benefit consumers directly:

• Home Price Tool: Enables customers to estimate the value of their home based on the same information used by real estate agents.
• Instant Alerts: Texts or emails when new homes are listed or when prices drop.
• Search by School: Shows all the homes for sale served by a certain school with one easy search.
• Offer and Tour Insights: Publishes real-time statistics and notes from Redfin agents about thousands of tours and offers.

About Redfin

Redfin (www.redfin.com) is a technology-powered real estate broker that represents people buying and selling homes. Founded and run by technologists, Redfin has a team of experienced, full-service real estate agents who are advocates, not sales-people, earning customer-satisfaction bonuses, not commissions. Redfin's online tools feature all the broker-listed homes for sale, as well as for-sale-by-owner properties that don't pay brokers a commission. The company serves 21 U.S. markets and has closed more than $5 billion in home sales. In 2012, Redfin was named one of The DIGITAL 100: World's Most Valuable Private Tech Companies by Business Insider. Follow us on blog.redfin.com, on Twitter @Redfin, and Facebook.com/Redfin.

SOURCE Redfin Corporation