Australian-listed online bidding platform Openn will soon be introduced to the US market, with the company locking down two real estate brokerage firms to trial its tech on the east coast.
Connecticut-based Century 21 AllPoints Realty and RE/MAX Revolution operating out of Massachusetts have entered into agreements with the company’s wholly owned subsidiary, Openn North America, to participate in a pilot program testing market appetite for the platform in the country.
This comes on the heels of the proptech’s selection to participate in the REACH Canada scale-up program in 2022.
Duncan Anderson, president of Openn North America, commented on the milestone of establishing their first partners in the US.
“The signing of these agreements is just one further step on the path to North American commercialisation and reflective of the good work done by our North American director of operations, Eric Bryant, and the Openn US team to implement the plan,” Mr Anderson said.
“There is more for us to do, but this step consolidates important relationships in key north-east US markets and aligns with the strategy for successful market entry into the US and in Canada.”
He noted that their Connecticut-based partner had been instrumental in helping to develop the program.
“Openn has established a strong relationship with the Century 21 AllPoints Realty team, including leveraging their advice over the past year, and culminating in the release of the US-specific pilot environment last week,” he said.
Kelly Petersen, owner and broker of Century 21 AllPoints Realty, said she was motivated to work with Openn because of the platform’s potential to shake up the industry.
“The real estate industry needs transparency, and today’s market has brought it to the forefront. Openn allows us the opportunity to provide that transparency and efficiency to our clients,” Ms Petersen said.
Mike DelRose Jr, director of marketing at RE/MAX Revolution in Boston, agreed, adding they are excited to align their business with an organisation trying to make the transaction process easier to understand.
“We are always exploring opportunities that will potentially benefit the homebuyer, the seller and the agent community. The Openn platform provides efficiency and transparency to the offer process, which can be a difficult part of the real estate transaction to navigate,” he said.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Juliet Helmke
Based in Sydney, Juliet Helmke has a broad range of reporting and editorial experience across the areas of business, technology, entertainment and the arts. She was formerly Senior Editor at The New York Observer.
You are not authorised to post comments.
Comments will undergo moderation before they get published.