Seattle-based real estate tech company Zillow Group Inc. (Nasdaq: ZG) is acquiring San Francisco-based Follow Up Boss, a software system for real estate agents.
Zillow, which announced the acquisition Wednesday, is paying $400 million cash upfront plus up to $100 million in cash earnout. A Zillow spokesperson said the company doesn't yet have an expected closing date.
"Zillow Group continues to invest in tech solutions to help agents deliver an increasingly seamless experience for our shared customers," Zillow President Susan Daimler said in a news release.
Follow Up Boss has about 100 full-time employees, and they will be joining Zillow after the acquisition closes. Follow Up Boss will keep its brand and operate as a stand-alone product. Zillow had 5,991 employees at the end of June, according to a regulatory filing.
Customers can continue to use Follow Up Boss regardless of whether those customers use other Zillow tools, and the company will still support other third-party partners. Zillow customers, meanwhile, can still use systems other than Follow Up Boss.
Follow Up Boss, founded in 2011, allows agents to organize leads and contacts in one place, and can automate personalized emails, texts and calls to leads. According to Follow Up Boss, the company has over 98,000 real estate agents on its platform.
Zillow, founded in 2004, offers a home and rentals search tool, as well as mortgages and a platform for partner agents called Premier Agent. In June, the company announced its decision to shut down Zillow Closing Services, its title and escrow service. The move eliminated about 80 roles at Zillow.
Zillow in 2021 decided to shut down Zillow Offers, its home-flipping business, in a move that took several quarters and resulted in laying off 25% of Zillow's headcount.
Zillow generated $496 million in revenue during the third quarter, up 3% from the same period last year. It had a net loss of $28 million. The company reported its third quarter financial results after the market's close Wednesday. Its share price is down 2.9% to $34.75 in after-hours trading.
The Follow Up Boss acquisition is the latest in a busy year for Zillow. In December 2022, Zillow acquired Milwaukee-based VRX Media, a real estate marketing company that provides agents with professional real estate photos, virtual tours, drone photos and drone videos. VRX Media was meant to strengthen ShowingTime+, which allows agents to schedule and manage listings. Zillow didn't disclose the financial terms of the deal.
In August, Zillow acquired Aryeo, a platform for real estate photographers, for $35 million. Zillow also houses Aryeo under ShowingTime+.
