When Zillow announced that it was hitting pause on its iBuying operations earlier this week, the news sent shockwaves through the real estate industry.
Zillow blamed the pause on labor and supply constraints that were hampering its ability to quickly renovate and efficiently turn over its housing inventory. The announcement sent Zillow’s stock plummeting 10% in the day after the report, while driving competitor Opendoor higher.
The key to Opendoor’s recent market expansion can be tied to a fundamental retooling of its playbook for launching in a new city or region.
Given the overlap between operations — Opendoor is in 23 of the 25 markets where Zillow was purchasing homes — there was some question about whether Opendoor was affected by the same shortages. But while Zillow is pulling back, Opendoor says it is plowing ahead.
Over the past nine months, Opendoor has aggressively expanded operations and has been growing its inventory. The company purchased 8,500 homes in the second quarter — more than double …
