Rocket Cos. is pushing deeper into the property market with a deal to buy Redfin Corp. that values the real estate listing site at $1.75 billion.
The Detroit-based financial technology group will pay $12.50 for every Redfin share in an all-stock transaction, according to a statement Monday that confirmed an earlier Bloomberg News report. The price represents a premium of 63% over the volume-weighted average price of Redfin’s common stock for the 30 days through Friday.
Shares in Redfin closed at $5.82 on Friday, giving the Seattle-based company a market value of about $736 million. Rocket has a market capitalization of about $31.5 billion. Redfin stock surged more than 80% in premarket trading on Monday, while Rocket shares fell around 10%.
Redfin Chief Executive Officer Glenn Kelman is anticipated to continue to lead the business, reporting to Rocket’s CEO Varun Krishna.
Redfin operates a home search platform with more than one million for-sale and rental listings and an tech-powered brokerage of more than 2,200 agents.
“Models from Redfin can augment models from Rocket and help us understand how and when a consumer is in a good place where their intent and their seriousness to buy a home increases,” Krishna said in an interview.
Krishna said more homes are selling for at or below their listing prices and that inventory is staying on the market for longer. “You’ve seen a little bit of relief with mortgage rates as well,” Krishna said. “So we look at these as good indicators.”
Rocket’s stable includes mortgage, real estate and personal finance businesses. The company expects to achieve more than $200 million in run-rate synergies by 2027 through the purchase of Redfin, according to the statement.
The company has said it’s betting on technology, specifically artificial intelligence, to fuel a rebound after a drop-off in mortgage origination.
“This is really about accelerating our purchase and our AI strategy,” Krishna said of the Redfin deal. “It allows us to integrate home search with the Rocket platform, which obviously covers things like financing, title, servicing, closing.”
Morgan Stanley is advising Rocket on the deal, and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. is working with Redfin. The transaction is expected to close in the second or third quarter of this year.
