Over the last few years, Home Bay, a San Diego-based real estate technology company, has steadily expanded its operation beyond California.
The company is now offering real estate services for a flat fee in Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Texas, Colorado and California.
And now, the company is about to grow again, but not by expanding to a new state. Rather, Home Bay announced this week that it is getting into the title insurance and settlement services business.
According to details provided by the company, Home Bay recently acquired a 50% stake in OTC National, a title insurance provider that operates under the name OnTitle.
OnTitle is licensed to provide escrow and title insurance services in 31 states.
Now, Home Bay will be able to offer title and escrow services within its platform, a “game-changing” development, according to the company.
“Our investment in OnTitle gives our consumers a streamlined process and optimum experience,” Ken Potashner, Home Bay’s chairman and CEO, said. “We’re now the one-stop-technology-shop for brokerage, title and escrow. Home Bay is quickly working its way into the full value chain to capture all affiliated services associated with a real estate transaction.”
Home Bay also said it will be able to save customers money by offering title services as part of the transaction, thereby reducing “many unnecessary” fees.
“For anyone who has ever looked at a settlement statement and wondered about all the junk fees tacked onto buying or selling a house, Home Bay is here to help,” Chris Crocker, vice president at Home Bay, said. “Not only can Home Bay lower the cost of your transaction with its flat-fee brokerage model, we can also help consumers save money on the ancillary services needed to facilitate that sale.”
Home Bay typically charges between $2,000 and $3,500 to sell a home rather than a 3% commission. On the other side of the deal, Home Bay rebates back half of the commission to the buyer.
Now, Home Bay is planning to bring its flat fee transaction services and title insurance offerings to its current states, with plans to expand beyond that.
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
