Seattle-based real estate brokerage website Redfin is targeting March to start posting rentals, said Chief Growth Officer Christian Taubman.
Although Redfin made a move into rentals with the April acquisition of Atlanta-based RentPath, the company has yet to integrate rentals directly onto its own website.
"We're really excited about both bringing rentals to consumers on Redfin's site and bringing those rental properties from RentPath in front of more consumers for the suppliers of those properties on the other side of the marketplace," Taubman said.
Redfin acquired RentPath for $608 million in cash. RentPath filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in February 2020 and agreed to be acquired by the D.C.-based CoStar Group, the parent company of Apartments.com, for $588 million, but the Federal Trade Commission sued to block the deal. The deal was terminated in December.
Jon Ziglar, the former CEO of ParkMobile, took over as RentPath's CEO this month. Redfin is now promoting RentPath brands such as Apartmentguide.com, Rent.com and Rentals.com in its FAQ section. Redfin's new rentals business generated $42.5 million in revenue in the second quarter, according to its latest earnings report.
Taubman said it is common for consumers to rent before they buy, which makes adding rentals a good tool for Redfin to connect with consumers earlier in their lives. In addition to making Redfin users aware that rentals are available on its site, Taubman added that a priority for the company will be putting the marketing tools of Redfin behind RentPath's brands.
"RentPath has some great consumer-facing brands, and that's something that we want to build upon," Taubman said.
Redfin, which launched in 2006, offers brokerage services, mortgages, renovations and iBuying. Its services are available in more than 100 markets across the U.S. and Canada.
Earlier this month, the company pushed back its office reopening date, which was initially slated for Sep.6. The company hasn't set a new date but will give employees at least 30 days notice before reopening.
Taubman said Redfin will adopt a hybrid work model and plans for employees at its largest offices to mostly come into the office two days a week, usually Tuesdays and Wednesdays. He added that the company, which now has more than 6,000 total employees, doesn't have plans to change its physical footprint.
"We feel pretty good about the physical footprint we have," Taubman said. "I think it's going to serve us well for what we need in the immediate future and over the terms of our leases."
