Better.com, a struggling fintech startup, has laid off its real estate team and is reportedly shifting from an in-house agent model to a partnership agent model, according to multiple sources. The move comes as no surprise, as rumors of Better.com’s plans to exit the real estate business have been circulating for some time, coinciding with a slowdown in the housing market due to rising mortgage interest rates.
Sources revealed that the impacted agents received minimal severance after experiencing a salary cut of over 50% in November. Better.com had previously expressed its intentions to expand its offerings beyond digital lending and become a comprehensive platform for finding and purchasing homes, even changing its name from Better Mortgage to Better to reflect this broader vision. It aimed to compete with companies like Zillow and Redfin in the real estate market.
However, the company’s ambitious plans did not fully materialize, and the trajectory of the business prompted the decision to exit the real estate sector. Better.com had invested resources in building consumer experiences and agent-facing tools for its real estate business, including a native mobile app.
Better.com has faced significant challenges in recent months, including multiple rounds of layoffs and senior executive departures. The company gained attention for its unconventional approach to laying off employees, which included a high-profile Zoom call laying off approximately 900 employees. Better.com had also delayed a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) deal with Aurora Acquisition Corp., which has now been extended to close the transaction by the end of Q3 2023.
The exit from the real estate business marks another major shift for Better.com as it navigates a challenging landscape and seeks to redefine its focus in the fintech industry.
