Homie Reviews: Pros, Cons, And Better Alternatives

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  Written by Bailey Peterson

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  Edited by Josiah Wilmoth

What is Homie? | Homie fees | Buyer rebates | How Homie works | Homie vs. traditional realtors | Top Homie alternatives | Find Homie reviews from customers

Homie Real Estate is a low-commission company that advertises large savings for home sellers and a commission rebate for buyers.

If you sell with Homie, you’ll pay a flat listing fee of $3,500, instead of the 2.5-3% that full-price realtors charge. That could mean big savings, especially if you’re selling a more expensive home.

However, as some Homie reviews demonstrate, you may face significant compromises when it comes to service quality. Other discount companies may deliver a better combination of savings and personalized service.

For example, our friends at Clever Real Estate offer a 1.5% listing fee. Their free agent matching process connects you with top full-service realtors in your area, ensuring you never compromise on agent quality or support. Learn how to start saving today!

P.S. If you’re just looking for Homie Real Estate reviews, you can find them here!

What Is Homie Real Estate?

Homie is a real estate brokerage that offers discounted listing fees for home sellers and commission rebates for buyers.

Since launching their Home Utah branch in 2015, Homie has helped customers buy and sell more than $3 billion worth of real estate. The company is Utah’s largest discount real estate brokerage, and Deloitte’s 2020 Technology Fast 500 report ranked Homie as North America’s 25th fastest-growing North American tech startup.

If you’re looking to save on realtor fees, we recommend our friends at Clever Real Estate. Sellers who work with Clever will pay a low 1.5% listing fee in exchange for full service and support from a top local realtor.

How does Homie work?

Homie makes money by advertising low real estate commission fees for home sellers. It offsets its discounted rates by having its agents serve a lot more customers at once than traditional realtors.

The company passes the savings onto customers in the form of discounted listing fees and commission rebates.

How much does Homie cost?

Homie charges home sellers a flat listing fee of $3,500, no matter the price of their home.

On higher-priced properties, Homie’s flat listing fee could save sellers thousands of dollars. However, it costs about as much as a traditional, full-price realtor on sales below $100,000.

Expect to offer up to 3% in buyer’s agent commission

While you’ll pay a much smaller listing fee when you sell with Homie, you should expect to offer a “traditional” buyer’s agent commission rate of 2.5-3%, depending on your area.

Advertising a competitive buyer’s agent fee incentivizes realtors to show your home. Offer too little, and they may encourage buyers to look at the house down the street instead.

Learn more about how real estate commission works — including the best ways to save.

Homie vs. traditional realtors

Homie claims that it “provides everything you would get with a traditional agent,” but that’s a bit misleading. 

Although Homie’s agents offer most of the same basic services, sellers should expect to compromise on personalized support — and potentially do more on-the-ground legwork themselves.

Homie agents juggle 10x more customers than most realtors

The biggest disadvantage to working with Homie is that your agent could be too busy to provide as much personalized service as you might expect.

Like many discount brokerages, Homie requires its agents to work on more transactions at once than traditional realtors. Homie CEO Johnny Hanna says the company’s full-time agents close around 120 deals per year, which is 10x as many as the average agent. That’s an extremely high amount, even for a discount brokerage.

Hanna frames this heavy workload in a positive light, suggesting it means Homie agents are “more experienced” than their peers. But we don’t buy that argument. In practice, it means your agent will be juggling 10x as many other customers at once compared with a traditional realtor.

A home sale or purchase is a major financial transaction and if your agent doesn’t have enough time to devote to you, then the likelihood of mistakes increases. You don’t want to feel like your agent is rushing through essential steps — like pricing your home accurately or negotiating with buyers and sellers — that could potentially impact your bottom line.

And if your sale gets complicated and you need extra support, your agent simply may not have the bandwidth to give you the same level of personalized guidance as a traditional realtor.

Looking for a less risky way to save on real estate commission? Our friends at Clever Real Estate offer a free agent-matching service that connects you with top-rated realtors in your area. Clever’s partner agents offer a full-service experience — all for just 1.5% of your home’s sales price.

Contact Clever today to see how much you can save!

Selling with Homie

When you sell with Homie, your agent will handle most of the services offered by traditional realtors. However, you may have to roll up your sleeves and take on a few DIY projects.

Homie will handle tasks like:

• Listing your home on the MLS
• Arranging professional photography
• Installing a yard sign and lockbox
• Managing paperwork and closing coordination

But it will be on you to write up a personalized listing description that attracts buyers. Want to host an open house? You’ll have to do that too. 

And remember: your agent will provide support for pricing your home, fielding offers, and negotiating with buyers, but they’ll have a much heavier workload than a traditional realtor.

As a result, your agent may be less familiar with the ins and outs of your situation. And since they’ve never seen your house up close, they may be at a disadvantage when negotiating with a buyer’s agent who has.

Buying with Homie

If you buy with a Homie agent, you may be eligible for a commission rebate worth up to half of your agent’s commission. The company applies the refund to your closing costs, which can help defray your out-of-pocket home buying expenses.

To qualify for a rebate, you must get pre-qualified for a mortgage with Homie Loans. However, eligible buyers still earn the rebate even if they choose another mortgage provider, so shop around to make sure you get the best rate!

In exchange for the chance to earn a commission refund, you may face potential service tradeoffs as a buyer with Homie. 

Once you’re ready to look at homes, you can schedule showings through the Homie app or website. A Homie buyer’s agent will accompany you on home tours, help you put together offers, and negotiate with the seller on your behalf. 

But remember that since Homie agents handle such a heavy workload, they may be more hands-off than a traditional realtor.

Homie Cash

Homie Cash is a service that lends eligible home buyers the funds to make all-cash offers, even if they need to finance the purchase with a conventional mortgage.

Making an all-cash offer can be a great way to strengthen your offer — especially in a seller’s market. Since your offer isn’t contingent on getting approved for a home loan, the seller doesn’t have to worry about the sale falling through before closing.

But you may end up paying more in the long run because you’ll have two sets of closing costs: one when Homie temporarily lends you the funds to purchase your home with cash, then a second set when you close on your regular mortgage.

Homie Real Estate reviews: Pros and cons

Homie reviews are generally positive, with an average customer rating of 4.3 out of 5 stars, based on reviews across Facebook, Google, and Yelp.

The company’s hands-off customer service model offers much lower listing fees than conventional, full-price real estate brokerages. That said, it’s a good idea to weigh Homie pros and cons carefully. Only then will you discover whether it’s your best option, or if another low commission real estate company provides superior value.

Pro: Homie’s DIY platform is a good fit for some sellers

This review comes from a satisfied seller with Homie Utah. The seller found Homie’s online platform intuitive and easy to use — even though the company’s hands-off customer service model isn’t the best fit for many traditional sellers.

Pro: Flat listing fee leads to big savings

Homie’s main selling point is its cheap listing fees. Satisfied customers consistently report that the company’s pricing structure delivers genuine savings.

This Homie review is from a seller who was very happy with their savings. However, they warn that customers may encounter a few “bumps along the way” in terms of service quality.

Homie tends to be a good fit for DIY-inclined sellers who are comfortable managing more of the sale themselves but still want access to an agent when they need support.

Con: Agents provide less personalized support than traditional realtors

The most common Homie complaint is that the company overpromises and underdelivers. Homie’s marketing claims sellers get “everything” they’d expect from a traditional agent. But Homie agents handle so many customers at once that they’re unlikely to be able to offer the same degree of personalized service that you’d get from a traditional agent.

Negative Homie reviews consistently warn that sellers have to do a lot more work than if they’d listed with a traditional brokerage.

This seller saved money with Homie, but ultimately felt that the listing fee discounts weren’t worth the service quality compromises they experienced.

Con: Overextended agents may not provide five-star service

Another common Homie complaint is that agents manage too many customers at once, and can’t devote proper time and energy to each sale.

Time and again, dissatisfied customers highlight that overextended Homie agents communicate poorly. This can create issues when sellers encounter problems that need to be addressed immediately. 

Given how difficult their agent was to contact, this seller felt their Homie experience was similar to selling “for sale by owner” — just a lot more expensive.

Subpar communication isn’t just frustrating. It can also put a potential sale at risk. Many negative Homie reviews come from buyers who wanted to purchase Homie homes but found it difficult to get in touch with the listing agent.

Area of concern: Homie’s add-on services may not be the best value

While Homie’s main business is helping sellers and buyers navigate real estate sales, it also makes money by encouraging existing customers to use its other in-house services. These include:

• Homie Loans: Homie’s in-house mortgage business
• Homie Title: A title and settlement company
• Homie Insurance: An independent insurance brokerage
• Homie Provider Marketplace: A referral network for electricians, landscapers, home inspectors, and other local contractors

Buying or selling a home can be an overwhelming process, so it’s convenient to use these in-house services rather than getting estimates from local companies yourself.

But, while Homie might have cheap commission rates, it doesn’t necessarily offer the best value when it comes to home loans or insurance. As this Homie review illustrates, you may experience issues in service quality. 

The best Homie alternatives

While Homie Real Estate is cheaper than a conventional brokerage at most price points, the company’s service model makes it a riskier option than some of its competitors. 

Depending on your situation, needs, and priorities, you may find better overall value with one of these Homie competitors.

1. Homie vs. Clever Real Estate

Clever is a free agent-matching service that offers big commission savings WITHOUT the service-quality compromises that come with Homie’s hands-off sales approach.

This company pre-negotiates low rates with traditional realtors from major brokerages like RE/MAX and Keller Williams. With Clever, you’ll sell with a top-rated, full-service agent for a 1.5% listing fee. Eligible buyers may also receive a cash refund with Clever Cash Back. 

Find out how much you can save with Clever today!

2. Homie vs. Redfin

If you want to save on realtor commission but aren’t comfortable sacrificing on-the-ground support, Redfin may be a good fit. Redfin’s 1.5% commission rate is more expensive than Homie’s flat listing fee for homes over $250,000 — but Redfin is the cheaper option for less-expensive homes.

Learn more about selling with Redfin.

3. Homie vs. Help-U-Sell

Like Homie, Help-U-Sell is a discount brokerage that charges a flat listing fee for sellers in Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, and Utah. Help-U-Sell’s fees vary by location and range from $2,950 to $7,950 — so Homie will likely be the cheaper option, but you’ll need to check with your local office to be sure. Service quality also varies by location, but selling with Help-U-Sell will likely be a similar experience to selling with Homie.

Learn more about selling with Help-U-Sell.

Homie Real Estate locations

Somewhere else, or just want to compare your options? Find the best low commission real estate companies near you!

FAQs about Homie

Related links

Homie isn’t the only real estate company that offers discounted listing fees, so compare your options! Read on to learn about Homie alternatives that offer bigger commission savings, better service quality, or both.

What Companies Offer the Lowest Real Estate Commission Fees?: Homie’s listing fees are cheap, but how do they stack up against the competition? Find out which discount service charges the lowest commission rates.

Discount Real Estate Brokers and Agents: Everything You Need to Know: Selling with a discount real estate broker like Homie is often a very different experience from using a conventional realtor. Learn more about how discount brokers work.

Clever Real Estate: Must-See Reviews: Whether you’re buying or selling, Clever can help you find top-rated real estate agents in your area. Learn how its free agent-matching service can connect you with full-service realtors who charge just 1.5%.