Ribbon vs IBuyers

iBuyers only purchased 0.3% of U.S. homes that sold in the fourth quarter of 2020. However, to the everyday homebuyer, their effects are felt far and wide—especially in markets like Atlanta, Dallas, Phoenix, Charlotte, and Raleigh. "It is possible that as their market share grows, iBuyers could eventually have enough power to manipulate the market, drive prices up and keep middle-class borrowers from buying a home,”  says Jacob Channel, a senior economic analyst at LendingTree.

Ribbon’s mission is to make homeownership achievable for people—not Wall Street. We believe in empowering community members and understand that homes should be for families to own and live in. It’s essential to the community fabric. To understand how Ribbon is different, first, you have to understand iBuyers.

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What is an iBuyer?

An iBuyer, also called an “instant buyer” is a company that values, buys, and sells homes using proprietary algorithms. Popular iBuyers include Opendoor, and Offerpad and, previously, Zillow Offers—which has announced it will no longer be in the iBuyer market. This is a big downfall of Zillow as iBuyers are using AI to determine prices, without the necessary human touch that Ribbon integrates into its own valuations. All iBuyers processes are slightly different, but they all use data to estimate the price they think they can sell a property for.

What are iBuyers doing to the market?

Since iBuyers are able to act so quickly, and with all cash, they are able to buy up large amounts of homes in a city or neighborhood. Worthy community buyers are losing out to national companies who are purchasing just for profit. This is affecting the value of houses in these neighborhoods and pushes already expensive prices even higher. On top of that, because iBuyers are “on the clock” when they own a home, they often end up selling to holding companies from Wall Street who turn them into rentals for shockingly high prices.

So how is Ribbon different from Ibuyers?

Ribbon is not an iBuyer. We originated the Power Buyer Model in 2017 as a tool for everyday homebuyers who want to invest their lives in a home. Not just invest. 

Through the Power Buyer model,  we are able to turn buyers’ offers into all-cash so they can compete with iBuyers and Wall Street and win the home they love, and fits their lives. They are able to move in right away, and if they need time, we’ll hold it (at the exact same price) while they secure financing. 

Furthermore - our model specifically works with - not against - the real estate ecosystem of buyers and agents. And the best part? We do not take commission away from the agent we partner with. We also believe every buyer should have the agent and lender they choose. And we believe agents are significant advocates, providing community expertise Wall Street can’t buy.

When a family buys a home, they increase their intergenerational wealth, their children's’ educational potential, and, as some studies have shown, there are physical health benefits as well. Not only that - they’re more likely than investors to put investments into a home that don’t just improve the value and character of that home - making the home greener, increasing curb appeal, and more - but bring stronger economic and social value to the community. 

If you’re looking to turn your offer into the strongest in real estate, all-cash, we’re here to help. Click here to book some time to speak with a Ribbon expert.