Phoenix Startup GetYourNest.com Looking To Reimagine Home Buying

PHOENIX, AZ — A pair of Phoenix-based Realtors grew tired with the way the industry handled homebuyers and set their sights on redefining the industry.

The pair in question are Brandon LaVallee and Eugene Quackenbush, who both worked for real estate firm, Opendoor in Phoenix, prior to launching their new venture, GetYourNest.com.

The service, which launched on Monday, is an app-based home buying experience that provides on-demand home viewings.

It also features an item that LaVallee and Quackenbush learned from their days in the industry, which centers around how much money real estate agents make off commissions.

That's why GetYourNest.com gives 50 percent of the agent's commission on a sale back to the buyers, which allows them to afford a better quality of home than they normally would qualify for if they had to cover the full cost of commission.

"I think [GetYourNest.com] is sort of a culmination of our experience in the industry," LaVallee told Patch. "And really, looking at some of the antiquated parts of it, just really trying to figure out how we can utilize technology to make home buying a more efficient process."

LaVallee believes the app-based system can streamline the home buying process considerably, as an interested buyer can jump on the app, browse properties and make an offer on it, without having to wait for showings.

The streamlined process can make a big difference for prospective homebuyers, as the average buyer spends three weeks on average before calling an agent for a showing, according to research by the National Association of REALTORS.

GetYourNest.com will still partner with local realty companies, as the company plans on solely focusing on the home buying portion of the industry, leaving the sales side to others in the area.

The plan right now is to focus on the Valley, with an eye toward franchising the business to other locales if it hits the ground running.

Both LaVallee and Quackenbush know the industry well, with the former coming from a North Carolina family of Realtors, while the latter has been licensed in Phoenix since 2013.

Both are thrilled by the response from their early fundraising efforts, as the company has raised more than $3 million from pre-seed capital and tech investments to-date.

Quackenbush says the response from people he knows, both inside and outside of the real estate business, has been overwhelmingly positive since the company launched.

"There are a lot of agents that are trying to hire showing agents or work in virtual tours," Quackenbush said. "And like any other business, they're trying to figure out how hard they have to compete for business.

"So I think when you walk up and you're willing to give away half your commission, I think people are put on notice a little bit. So we've already seen a little bit of those conversations happening."

For now, LaVallee said the company's expectation is to steadily build a following in the region, offering top-notch, on-demand customer service that wins over prospective homebuyers.

From there, he and Quackenbush can think about slowly ramping up the scale of their business, connecting more people with more homes in and around the Valley.

"I think for us, it's all about the relationships and the transactions going really well, and buyers having great experiences," LaVallee said. "We kind of have a slower ramp-up planned, I guess. We think it's a conservative plan.

"We want consumers to use our app to go and tour properties and then use us to help them buy a house and really see excitement, from getting 50 percent of that commission back."

Both LaVallee and Quackenbush believe the commission setup will allow homebuyers to purchase a higher-quality home than what they previously budgeted for.

LaVallee uses the example of a homebuyer that wants to purchase a $500,000 home, but has to pay a 3 percent commission, which comes out to $15,000.

He figures that if homebuyers can get half of that commission, or $7,500, back, then they can afford to submit a higher down payment, which will in turn make their mortgage payments and other costs easier to afford.

LaVallee also expects local Realtors to want to work for them, as they'll make up for the loss in commission with higher hourly pay for employees and have greater flexibility to do what they love most, which is putting people in their dream home.

"We'll have an hourly rate for our touring agents, or the agents that are going out in the field and opening doors, and helping people actually get access to the home," LaVallee said.

The plan is to use a two-tiered employment system, with touring agents getting paid on a per-home basis, while in-house agents will work with homebuyers from start to finish on a full-time, salaried basis.

"It gives people some certainty on what they're going to make," LaVallee said. "And then a benefit to that is that they aren't going out and showing houses, because some agents really don't like doing that. They don't want to go show houses, they're good at paperwork, they want to be able to work at home or in an office and not be driving around town.

"And so, it's kind of like two different types of personalities that we're going to be utilizing."

The plan, as far as hiring is concerned, is to start with a small cast of agents, before aggressively ramping up hiring through the end of the year, Quakenbush said.

Eventually, the goal is to branch out into different markets, while maintaining the company's headquarters in Phoenix, hiring upwards of 100 employees in the Valley alone.

It's a bold blueprint, but one that LaVallee and Quackenbush believe in wholeheartedly.

Now the task for the duo is to put their newfound funding and wealth of experience into action, building a brand from the ground up.

"GetYourNest has one goal, to change the way that homes are bought," LaVallee said. "And we are solving the problem of access and affordability for homebuyers."