Offerpad Merges With Supernova SPAC To Go Public

Real estate platform Offerpad has announced a merger with Supernova, a publicly-traded special purpose acquisition company (SPAC), a press release says, with the company valued at $3 billion.

The deal will also provide Offerpad with up to $650 million in gross cash proceeds. The transaction will conclude with the new publicly-traded company being called Offerpad Solutions. The Class A common stock will be on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker “OPAD.”

Offerpad, which was formed in 2015, allows homeowners the opportunity to buy and sell homes online quickly. Homeowners are able to request a free 24-hour cash offer online in less than three minutes, partner with Offerpad to list a home with a back-up cash offer, or browse and buy available homes.

The platform also offers add-ons like show-ready home services, home improvement advances, extended stay options and title and mortgage services, according to the release.

Although there has been a growing demand for ease and convenience in real estate transactions, the share of online use is low compared with other industries, Offerpad said in the release, noting that comes to only around 1 percent of the $1.6 trillion total addressable market.

Supernova was helmed by Spencer Rascoff, who co-founded Hotwire, Zillow, dot.LA and Pacaso, along with investor Robert Reid and Alexander Klabin, founder and CEO of Ancient. With its investment, Offerpad expects to see expedited growth and the ability to capture more of the market opportunity.

Offerpad currently operates in over 900 cities and towns.

Real estate, in the same mode as almost everything else, suffered as the COVID-19 pandemic hit and put a freeze on the market while people hunkered down and stayed inside. It came roaring back in the second half of the year, with people considering new ideas about where to live as the pandemic slogged on.

People buying homes entirely on the internet is not likely to happen anytime soon — home buying is still an “emotional” experience, PYMNTS notes, and people often don’t want to buy something without seeing it. However, digital companies can help to ease points of friction and make the experience easier.