2 months ago
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There is a new real estate firm in town, but one of its founders is probably familiar to many in the real estate industry. Meet Landian, a real estate startup founded by Bryan Galen, Neal Batra and Josh Sitzer — yes, the same Sitzer who filed the now infamous Sitzer/Burnett commission lawsuit.
In an interview with TechCrunch, which first broke the news of Landian’s debut, Sitzer said his frustration with having to pay a 3% commission to a buyer’s agent on the sale of his Kansas City home in 2017, which his shared with his neighbor, who happened to be a lawyer familiar with the subject matter, prompted the lawsuit.
After four years of litigation and a jury verdict that found real estate industry players including the National Association of Realtors liable for colluding to artificially inflate agent commissions, NAR and the four corporate brokerage defendants have all settled Sitzer’s lawsuit as well as the countless copycat suits that sprang up after the jury verdict.
“I wouldn’t say I had expectations in the beginning, as it was a multi-year battle of ups and downs, but I had enough confidence in my position to commit to taking action,” Sitzer told TechCrunch.
Sitzer’s legal action not only resulted in financial settlements, but also business practice changes that went into effect earlier this month, the most notable of which are the removal of buyer broker compensation from the MLS and mandatory buyer broker agreements.
In an attempt to capitalize on the real estate industry’s new normal, Sitzer teamed up with Galen, whose startup fintech firm Zero was acquired by Avant in 2021, and Batra to found Landian.
The website, which claims it is not a brokerage, allows homebuyers to select services from real estate agents and pay for them a la carte. The company describes itself “as a platform that schedules and coordinates service contracts between homebuyers and licensed real estate agents who work for their own brokerages, as well as software tool that helps buyers prepare their own offers.”
“Landian operates as a technology platform providing AI-driven services to facilitate real estate transactions. This distinction means that while we assist in the process of buying or selling real estate, we do not represent clients as a broker or agent would,” the company states on its FAQ page. “Our services are designed to complement your transaction efforts, offering a streamlined, efficient alternative to traditional brokerage services without providing legal or financial advice.”
The site allows users to import a listing from any real estate site and then book a home tour or prepare an offer with a licensed local agent, without owning a traditional commission. Instead, Landian utilizes a flat fee model, giving buyers the option to pay as they go for services or at the closing.
Landian charges buyers $49 for each home tour, $199 for an offer preparation session with an agent, and $99 for an AI-powered offer preparation session. Additionally, if the buyer would like a higher level of service, Landian charges $1,799 for a package that includes up to five home tours and two offer prep sessions. Added services, like additional home tours, offer prep sessions or closing consultations, are still available a la carte.
If buyers choose to utilize this tier of service, they pay the total amount due for the services they utilized at closing, if they purchase ant house in the U.S. or Canada within 90 days of signed up, or if they purchase any house that they used Landian to schedule a tour or submit and offer on within one year of signing up for Landian. If a buyer does not successfully close on a property, Landian says that they will not owe the firm or their agent anything.
If you utilize just an offer prep session and the seller rejects your offer, the flat fee for the offer prep session still applies, but support for handling counteroffers is part of the original offer prep flat fee.
The company claims it saves consumers an average of $15,000 per transaction.
Agents who sign on to the Landian platform will still be brokered at their brokerage and not by Landian. In order to comply with the terms of the NAR settlement, agents working with clients on the Landian platform must sign a Landian Buyer-Broker Agreement, which the firm says is “e-signed by the buyer before any services, such as property tours or offer preparation, are provided. The agreement ensures that the compensation for your services is clearly outlined and objectively ascertainable, in compliance with the latest NAR settlement changes.”
“By using the Landian platform, both you and your client are protected by a legally sound, transparent agreement that aligns with industry regulations and best practices,” the firm’s FAQ page states.
Agents who meet a client through the Landian platform must maintain all of their communication with that client within the platform.
Landian currently available to serve clients all districts, states, territories and provinces of the U.S. and Canada. The company has yet to raise external capital and is so far operating with friends and family money. According to TechCrunch it is in the process of raising a seed funding round.
Landian did not return a request for comment.
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