In a competitive housing market like Austin, cash offers are always best. They’re usually less financially risky for sellers, which means they are much more likely to be accepted over financed purchase offers.
UpEquity, a tech-enabled mortgage platform, is reimagining this reality by allowing users to turn their offer into a cash offer, giving them a competitive edge when buying a home — even if they are first-time home buyers. Instead of requiring these users to have an existing house for sale (the industry standard now), the company provides a cash offer and a mortgage by blending computer vision and algorithms. UpEquity also helps sell users’ old homes through its Trade Up feature.
In the end, UpEquity’s tech aims to lower interest rates and close deals faster, disrupting the legacy home-buying process that’s been in place for decades.
Now, with $25 million of fresh funding in its coffers, UpEquity is one step closer to doing just that. Announced on Thursday, the Series A round was led by Next Coast Ventures, and is a combination of growth equity and venture debt.
“Our goal is to finally align the mortgage industry with consumer interests,” UpEquity co-founder and CEO Tim Herman said in a statement. “This funding is validation that consumers, real estate agents and venture investors understand the power of removing friction from the home-buying process, not only for personal advancement, but to attain the American Dream.”
UpEquity currently does business throughout its home state of Texas, as well as Colorado, Florida and California, with plans to expand into new markets later this year. The company is also hiring at its Austin headquarters, with several open tech positions available now.
Thomas Ball, managing director at Next Coast Ventures, says UpEquity’s vision and model hasn’t been seen before in the proptech industry, and he anticipates the company will be one of the players that dominates the space going forward.
“As real estate continues to evolve in the face of limited supply and tight competition, UpEquity is at the helm of proptech’s growing capabilities,” Ball said in a statement. “Most innovation has focused on the front end, but until now, nobody has expedited what happens after the borrower submits an application. UpEquity has the team, talent and technology to not only succeed, but to disrupt and emerge as the leader in the mortgage lending marketplace.”
