On the client side, buyers and sellers that use Xome get a minimum of 1 percent of the purchase price back. Conversely, agents in the network agree to dedicate a minimum of one percentage point of their commission to cover it. However, they can offer a greater return than 1 percent to the customer as an incentive if they choose to.
Any agent can now apply to become part of the Xome Agent Network, but at the start, Xome turned to their real estate ops agent panel. All of these agents had gone through full background checks, which helped to ensure customer safety. “Then we made sure they were active because we didn’t want to go with part-time agents doing three transactions per year,” Pinto explains. Of the 8,000 or so agents in the panel, 5,000 received an invite, and 4,000 made the cut.
That number has grown as agents from other companies have joined, but not substantially since Xome has kept caps in place. “We don’t want to go above what we can generate for agents,” Pinto says. “If we can’t increase leads, we can’t increase the panel.”
Xome anticipates that there will be more agents knocking on their door because they’re investing in the advertising to make it happen. They’ve struck deals with four NFL teams in targeted markets. “In those markets, our agents who are Xome agents can reference ‘the official real estate app’ of the respective team on their marketing materials,” says Allison Cornia, chief marketing officer at Xome. “They have to work with us, and it has to be approved, but it’s free of charge.”
That dovetails with Xome’s stated goal of empowering agents to focus on their clients and their business. Time saved on marketing will help them maximize their revenue, particularly if it helps them shrink their marketing budget while Xome does the heavy lifting. “So as our marketing dollars are spent in different markets, we have to be prepared, and we have to respond,” says Cornia.
A proper response needs data, so internally, the company sifts through agent and customer metrics each week. “What we’re evaluating is how we’re curating leads,” Ramachandran says, “so they’re handed off to an agent as a qualified lead, and the agent has the context necessary to take the proper course of action.”
Quality control efforts also include territory limitations, something Xome had to adapt to. Pinto notes that he encourages agents to treat their territories like retail. “Select a 10-mile radius and stick to it because we’ll look at performance and coverage.” Initially, some agents selected as many as 100 different zip codes when they created their Xome profile to lure in as many leads as possible. Now the company limits it to 20.
Pinto onboards agents who have submitted inquiries with a webinar. The structure of the presentation is similar each time, but continuous improvements and tweaks to the platform require regular updates. As many as 300 agents participate at a time, rendering Q&A sessions unpredictable in terms of duration and content. All of this precludes Pinto from recording the sessions he hosts so they can be re-used. “Sometimes I’m on one for an extra 40 minutes answering questions,” he says. “We check our ego at the door, and we know we’re not 100 percent right, so we have to be nimble, responsive and attentive. We make changes as we learn things.”
To help agents handle customer needs on a new platform that will face inevitable growing pains, Xome created a concierge service that is designed, in part, to help both parties along the way. Concierge reps can be reached by chat, email or phone 24 hours a day. “They back up the agents and provide an outlet for customers that have urgent questions,” Pinto says. “The concierge is there to help address a situation early in the game so it can be handled as quickly and satisfactorily as possible.”
Concierge reps are limited to an extent about what they can help with because they do not have a real estate license, but they’re trained to know the platform intimately, speak with leads and help gather as much information as possible to help the agent address customer questions once they’re back online.
Qualified leads and the concierge service are key pieces to the puzzle of what Xome is trying to accomplish, but the company is banking on leaps and bounds of progress to take place within the Xome Pro app. And there is substantial progress to be made. According to a Xome-commissioned national survey of 250 licensed real estate agents conducted by Penn Schoen Berland, agents use an average of four different apps throughout the transaction process. Worse, more than a quarter of the agents surveyed reported using six apps or more.
Ideally, agents will capture all of that functionality and more with Xome Pro once the app is installed. The next step is to invite all client contacts, even from other sources such as Zillow, to connect on the app. Then a concierge can help qualify those contacts to determine if they’re worthwhile leads. Once the search and discovery phase begins, clients can search through MLS listings, favorite homes and trade notes that are automatically updated in the agent’s app and vice versa.
Xome Pro also enables tour scheduling and loan pre-qualification in a streamlined way. And once that critical moment arrives when it’s time to make an offer, the agent is instantly alerted with the app.
Pinto notes that Xome is currently adding lenders and title companies. “As an agent, you can ask, ‘Who do you plan to use for title, for lending? Link us up with them.’ It will all be done from the app, but you’ll still have choices. As far as I know, there isn’t a single app that can do that.” At the moment, those services are handled via the concierge, and Xome is working on full integration during Beta testing.
There are other features, too. With Xome Pro, a buyer will be able to submit an earnest money deposit by sending a photo of the check with the app. It will also enable scheduling a home inspection, title completion and settlement services. And most closing docs will be handled within the app, sidestepping confusing or scattered email chains.
Critically, brokers, agents and consumers can review, approve and track the progress of the purchase in real-time. Everything flows through them—a direct reflection of Ramachandran’s goal to “amplify the personal element with technology, not replace it,” he explains. “The burden of proof is on tech companies trying to step inside a relationship business.
“There’s no doubt in my mind that I wouldn’t have bought the house I’m standing in right now if it hadn’t been for my agent,” he says. “There’s too much natural emotional overhead in buying something as important as a house for your family without being able to look someone in the eye and know you trust them.”
For more information, visit www.xome.com.
