Zillow has cut about 80 positions from its Zillow Offers homebuying and selling operation, streamlining its management structure in some of the 25 markets where the service has launched, GeekWire has learned.
The service, which competes with companies such as Seattle-based Redfin and San Francisco-based Opendoor in the direct purchase and sale of homes, is still targeting an overall expansion in the coming year. The company doesn’t disclose the overall size of the Zillow Offers team. Seattle-based Zillow Group, parent company of Zillow and other online real estate brands, employed more than 5,300 people as of June.
“The changes in our team, while never easy, will put us in a strong position to continue investing in Zillow Offers for the long term by realigning our resources and staffing levels to best meet the evolving needs of our customers,” a Zillow spokesperson said via email.
The Zillow Offers service, which launched 2 1/2 years ago, is part of a broader expansion of Zillow Group’s business under CEO Rich Barton, the Zillow co-founder who retook the reins of the company last year. The company resumed buying and selling homes in June after pausing at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Zillow Group’s “Homes” segment, which includes Zillow Offers, brought in $454 million in revenue in the second quarter, with a loss of $80 million, before income taxes. The company sold 1,437 homes and purchased 86 homes for the period The company reports its third-quarter earnings on Nov. 5.
Zillow and other companies operating in the “iBuyer” market purchase homes directly from consumers, often making modest improvements (but not major renovations) before relisting and seeking to sell the homes for a profit.
The market is getting more attention as Opendoor prepares to become publicly traded via a special purpose acquisition company, or SPAC. Opendoor’s investor presentation shows $4.7 billion in revenue in 2019 with a loss of $218 million before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization.
